Channelwill Upsell Cross Sell vs. Downly ‑ Sell Digital Products: An In-Depth Comparison

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
2. Channelwill Upsell Cross Sell vs. Downly ‑ Sell Digital Products: At a Glance
3. Deep Dive Comparison
4. The Alternative: Unifying Commerce, Content, and Community Natively
5. Practical Migration Checklist: From Fragmentation to Native
6. Final Comparison Summary: Which Tool Is Best For Whom?
7. Conclusion
8. FAQ

Introduction

Shopify merchants who want to sell digital products, add memberships, or build communities face a crowded app landscape. Choosing between single-purpose utilities and platforms that bundle upsells, downloads, or course hosting requires a clear view of trade-offs: ease of setup, ownership of the checkout experience, pricing predictability, and whether customers stay "at home" on the merchant's storefront.

Short answer: Channelwill Upsell Cross Sell is a lightweight, checkout-focused upsell tool that can help merchants configure pop-ups, cart add-ons, and post-purchase offers quickly. Downly ‑ Sell Digital Products is focused on turning Shopify products into digital downloads, managing files and license keys. Neither app is positioned as a full course or community platform, and both can leave gaps for merchants who want native, long-term course and membership capabilities. For merchants who want a single, Shopify-native solution that combines courses, memberships, and commerce, a Shopify-native app can avoid fragmentation and improve lifetime value.

This article provides a feature-by-feature, practical comparison of Channelwill Upsell Cross Sell and Downly ‑ Sell Digital Products, with objective strengths and weaknesses, pricing comparisons, and recommended use cases. After the direct comparison, the piece explains why many merchants choose a natively integrated platform to keep customers inside Shopify and uses real-world merchant results to demonstrate the outcomes of that approach.

Channelwill Upsell Cross Sell vs. Downly ‑ Sell Digital Products: At a Glance

Deep Dive Comparison

What each app is trying to solve

Channelwill Upsell Cross Sell: checkout-driven incremental revenue

Channelwill is positioned as a simple upsell/cross-sell tool. It focuses on three common sell moments: product page pop-up sales, cart/post-purchase add-ons, and thank-you page offers. These are classic conversion-leveraging touchpoints: present a relevant add-on at the moment of intent, and increase Average Order Value (AOV) and short-term revenue without complex engineering.

Key intents:

• Increase order value via immediate upsells and bundles.
• Use pop-ups and motivational content to nudge purchases.
• Integrate quickly with checkout flows to present offers where customers are ready to buy.

Downly ‑ Sell Digital Products: product-level digital delivery

Downly’s core proposition is to turn ordinary Shopify products into digital downloads and to manage digital delivery (files, videos, license keys). It aims at brands that sell standalone downloadable assets — ebooks, PDFs, software keys, media files — and want automated delivery and updates.

Key intents:

• Simplify file uploads and automated delivery after purchase.
• Manage license keys for digital product activation.
• Offer a freemium entry-level plan for stores with low order counts.

Feature Comparison

Product and content delivery

Channelwill

• Focuses on presenting offers, not on hosting or delivering digital content.
• No native file storage or license key delivery feature. It is not designed to be a download manager or course host.
• Works at the checkout and post-purchase touchpoints to suggest additional products or discounts.

Downly

• Built specifically to attach digital files to Shopify products and deliver them automatically by email after purchase.
• License key generation and management are included, which is important for software and licensed digital goods.
• Storage tiers (300 MB free, then paid tiers up to 120 GB) make it suitable for video-heavy products if upgraded.
• File updates and customer notifications on updates are supported on paid plans.

Implication: If the requirement is the reliable delivery of files and license keys, Downly addresses that directly. Channelwill does not.

Upsells, bundles, and checkout behavior

Channelwill

• Supports product page pop-ups, cart add-ons, and post-purchase offers on the thank-you page.
• Designed to increase AOV without a complex setup.
• Because it works with checkout, it can surface offers at high-conversion moments.

Downly

• Not an upsell engine. Digital delivery capability can be combined with other upsell tools, but Downly won’t manage checkout-first upsells or post-purchase offers on its own.

Implication: For merchants whose primary goal is increasing AOV via targeted upsells, Channelwill fits the bill. Merchants who need both upsells and digital delivery would need to pair Downly with an upsell app — adding fragmentation.

Memberships, courses, communities, and access control

Channelwill

• Not built for membership gating, drip content, or course-building.
• Does not manage member accounts, course modules, community forums, or course analytics.

Downly

• Provides digital downloads but does not provide course structures, lesson access control, membership subscriptions, or community functionality.

Implication: Neither app is a course or community platform. Build-out of courses, memberships, and ongoing community engagement would require additional tools or custom development.

Automation and workflows

Channelwill

• Offers quick configuration of discount and reward offers at key pages.
• Works at checkout to present offers; the integration depth with Shopify Flow or other automations is unclear from public data.

Downly

• Automates email delivery of files and license keys and can notify customers of updates.
• No explicit mention of integration with Shopify Flow or advanced automation primitives.

Implication: For merchants relying on automation across orders, customers, and fulfillment, both apps will need coordination with other apps. This can produce operational overhead, especially when stitching multiple services together.

Analytics and reporting

Channelwill

• Likely provides basic tracking for upsell conversions (common for upsell apps), but publicly available information is sparse. The app has 2 reviews (rating 5), which suggests limited public insight into advanced reporting.

Downly

• Likely provides delivery and order indicators for digital product downloads. No public reviews to consult for detailed analytics expectations.

Implication: Both apps appear focused on core functionality rather than deep analytics, and merchants that prioritize advanced reporting should verify reporting capabilities directly with the developer.

Pricing & Value

Pricing is a practical decision for merchants; it affects predictability and scalability.

Channelwill Pricing (as provided)

• Plan1 — Free: For stores doing 0–50 orders/month. All features; 24/7 support.
• Plan2 — $5.99/month: For stores doing 51–100 orders/month. All features; 30-day free trial.
• Plan3 — $11.99/month: For stores doing 101–200 orders/month. All features; 30-day free trial.

Value notes:

• The pricing is straightforward and tied to monthly order volume, which can be predictable for smaller merchants.
• The price points imply a low-cost option that scales modestly.
• Free tier for very low-volume stores makes it easy to start.

Downly Pricing (as provided)

• Free: Unlimited digital products & keys, 300 MB free storage, automatic email delivery, up to 30 orders.
• Standard — $2.95/month: Unlimited orders, no Downly branding, 12 GB storage, no upload max file size, file update notifications.
• Plus — $4.95/month: All Standard features plus priority support and 120 GB storage.

Value notes:

• Very low cost for paid tiers; clearly targeted to digital merchants of small to medium scale.
• Free tier restriction (30 orders) makes it suitable for demos, low-volume shops, or proof-of-concept.
• Paid tiers remove branding and offer sizable storage for small course or download sellers.

How to think about value for money

• Channelwill is priced to be a low-cost upsell tool. If the sole goal is to add post-purchase upsells and cart add-ons without building a course or membership, it is likely a cost-efficient choice.
• Downly offers highly affordable paid tiers focused on digital delivery. For merchants selling downloads or license-managed items, the value can be compelling versus building custom solutions.
• Neither app replaces a full course or community platform. For that, a merchant should compare the cost of multiple apps plus the operational overhead to a single, native solution.

Integrations & Ecosystem Fit

Integration depth determines how seamlessly an app plays with other platform features.

Channelwill

• Works with Checkout (explicitly).
• Categories show it targets digital goods and services, but feature descriptions focus on pop-ups and checkout offers.
• Level of integration with Shopify Flow, Customer Accounts, or subscription platforms is not clear from available public metadata.

Downly

• Works with digital downloads and digital product types on Shopify.
• Provides automatic email delivery of files and license keys, so integration with Shopify orders is core.
• No public signal of advanced integrations (Shopify Flow, subscriptions, or third-party course tools).

Implication:

• Both apps integrate with key parts of Shopify that matter to their use cases: Channelwill with checkout; Downly with product/digital downloads.
• For merchants wanting subscription billing, membership gates, or deeper automation (e.g., conditional access on purchases), these apps may require additional integrations.

Support, Reviews, and Trust Signals

Channelwill

• Number of reviews: 2
• Rating: 5
• Comment: A perfect rating with only two reviews is a limited sample. The low review count means due diligence is required: test the app on a development store and validate support responsiveness and compatibility with the store theme and checkout.

Downly

• Number of reviews: 0
• Rating: 0
• Comment: No public reviews make it difficult to gauge reliability, support quality, or edge-case behavior. When an app has no reviews, merchants should test carefully and consider asking the developer about uptime, known limitations, or sample stores.

Implication: Both apps lack robust public review histories. That increases the responsibility on merchants to test in a staging environment and validate integration paths before rolling out to customers.

Security and Delivery Guarantees

Digital products need reliable, secure delivery and access control. Merchants should ask the following when evaluating any download manager or upsell tool:

• How are files stored and served (CDN)? Is download access tokenized and time-limited to prevent link sharing?
• For license keys: are they unique and securely delivered?
• Is there support for file versioning and notifying customers on updates?

Channelwill

• Not a file delivery tool; security implications are limited to checkout experiences and how post-purchase offers are processed.

Downly

• Offers automatic email delivery and file update notifications. Storage plans suggest files are hosted. Merchants should confirm whether downloads use expiring, tokenized links and whether download counts or expirations can be set.

Merchant action: Request technical documentation or an FAQ from the developer before using Downly for high-value or license-restricted digital goods. For Channelwill, verify that upsell logic does not introduce cart inconsistencies with subscriptions or multi-item discounts.

Ease of Use and Merchant Experience

Channelwill

• Messaging emphasizes quick setup and simple integration. For standard Shopify themes and a linear checkout, configuration is likely straightforward.
• Best for merchants who want to add upsell touchpoints without heavy setup or design work.

Downly

• Advertised as a few clicks to convert products to digital downloads. The UI is likely focused on product-level settings (attach files, set key behaviors).
• If a merchant's store architecture already places downloadable products in a simple product structure, integration is low friction.

Implication: Both apps promise easy onboarding for their specific use-cases. The real UX test is how they behave with a real catalog, subscriptions, and bundling between physical and digital SKUs.

Operational Considerations

When apps do one thing well, merchants often need multiple apps to run a full digital product + community business. That introduces friction.

Common operational pain points when combining single-purpose apps:

• Multiple places for customer accounts, causing login confusion.
• Fragmented emails (different from store branding) that confuse customers.
• Manual mapping between physical product bundling and course access (unless apps natively support bundling).
• Increased support load when customers can’t access content due to cross-app misconfigurations.

Neither Channelwill nor Downly solves the broader operational challenge of bundling digital courses with physical product sales and memberships natively on Shopify. That is an important theme for merchants who want to increase lifetime value by packaging physical and digital together.

Use-Case Recommendations

Best use-case for Channelwill

• Merchants whose primary goal is to boost AOV with minimal setup.
• Stores that already have digital delivery or course platforms elsewhere but want native, checkout-focused upsells.
• Stores that need simple, low-cost post-purchase offers without membership functionality.

Best use-case for Downly

• Merchants selling downloadable digital assets (eBooks, PDFs, design files, music, or license keys).
• Stores that need affordable storage, automated delivery, and license key management.
• Small shops that want a low-cost, hosted delivery mechanism that works at the product level.

Not suitable if:

• A merchant needs full course hosting, drip content, member directories, community discussions, or native bundling of physical + digital products into one purchase flow — neither app is designed for those scenarios.

The Alternative: Unifying Commerce, Content, and Community Natively

Why platform fragmentation matters

Many merchants solve immediate tactical needs by adding point solutions — a digital delivery app for downloads, a separate upsell app for AOV, and an external course platform or forum for membership content. This approach can work in the short term, but it creates several long-term costs:

• Disjointed customer experience: customers must leave the store or log into external platforms to access content, increasing friction and support requests.
• Operational overhead: multiple apps mean more billing, more integrations to maintain, and higher chances of data mismatches.
• Conversion leakage: sending customers off-site or through disconnected checkout flows reduces conversion and makes it harder to analyze customer lifetime value.
• Support volume and complexity: when customers face access issues, merchants must identify which service is responsible.

These problems are visible in real merchant migrations: stores that consolidate onto a native platform often reduce support tickets and raise conversion rates by keeping everything in one place.

The native approach: keep customers at home

A Shopify-native platform that combines courses, membership, digital product delivery, and commerce preserves the store’s checkout, branding, and customer accounts. This reduces friction and creates clean opportunities to upsell digital content alongside physical goods.

Benefits of a native approach:

• Unified checkout: sell a physical bag and a course in the same transaction without redirecting customers.
• Bundled offers: package kits with on-demand courses for higher AOV and better post-purchase retention.
• Consistent branding and email flows: customers receive emails and access from the store they recognize.
• Simpler operations: one admin interface to manage content, members, and commerce.

Introducing Tevello: a Shopify-native option

Tevello is designed specifically to solve the problems that point solutions leave behind: it combines courses, digital products, and communities inside the Shopify ecosystem so merchants can sell, host, and retain customers from a single place. Merchants who move to a native platform often see both revenue and operational gains because customers never have to leave the store to access content.

Key native benefits:

• Designed to natively leverage Shopify checkout and customer accounts.
• Bundles physical and digital products seamlessly to increase LTV and repeat purchases.
• Built-in membership and community features, such as drip content and certificates, so merchants don’t need separate course platforms.

See Tevello’s core capabilities and how they tie into a single store experience by checking out all the key features for courses and communities.

Real merchant results that illustrate the difference

Concrete outcomes are the strongest proof that a native approach can change business metrics.

• How one brand sold $112K+ by bundling courses with physical products: Crochetmilie consolidated digital courses and physical products on Shopify and sold over 4,000 digital courses, generating $112K+ in digital revenue while also adding $116K+ in physical product revenue after moving to a native platform. Read the case study to see how bundling helped create predictable revenue streams: how one brand sold $112K+ by bundling courses with physical products.
• Migrated over 14,000 members and reduced support tickets: Charles Dowding moved off a fragmented Webflow + custom code setup to a Shopify-native system and successfully migrated 14,000+ members, adding 2,000+ new members and dramatically reducing support load. See the migration example here: migrated over 14,000 members and reduced support tickets.
• Generated over €243,000 by upselling existing customers: fotopro used native course and upsell flows to monetize repeat buyers and generated €243K+ from 12,000+ courses, with a strong percentage of revenue coming from repeat purchasers. The case study highlights how native upselling and course bundling lead to repeat sales: generated over €243,000 by upselling existing customers.
• Achieved a 59%+ returning customer rate by bundling physical kits with courses: Klum House combined bag-sewing kits with digital lessons to lift returning purchase rates and AOV. Read about their outcome: achieved a 59%+ returning customer rate.
• Doubled conversions by removing fragmentation: Launch Party replaced a duct-taped stack (WordPress + external course platform) with Tevello and doubled store conversion rate by keeping customers in a single, streamlined experience: doubled its store's conversion rate by fixing a fragmented system.

Additional evidence from other use cases — like a 5-day challenge that converted a significant portion of participants into paid customers — shows that keeping promotional experiences on-site increases conversion and makes follow-up simpler: see how merchants are earning six figures by consolidating on a native platform: see how merchants are earning six figures.

Pricing and predictability with a native platform

When evaluating multiple apps, merchants often face unpredictable recurring costs as each add-on charges separately. A single native platform can be a better value for money because it consolidates those capabilities into one predictable plan.

Tevello offers a simple, predictable plan for merchants who need unlimited courses and memberships. For details on pricing and the plan that gives unlimited courses and members at a single monthly price, see a simple, all-in-one price for unlimited courses.

If merchants want to preview Tevello in the Shopify marketplace context or check out merchant reviews and native integration messaging, see that Tevello is natively integrated with Shopify checkout and read the 5-star reviews from fellow merchants.

Migration and operational simplicity

Migrating to a native platform avoids ongoing integration maintenance. The Charles Dowding story is an example of a large migration where moving to a single platform reduced support tickets and improved member growth: migrated over 14,000 members and reduced support tickets.

For merchants who want to evaluate potential uplift before committing, Tevello’s success story hub aggregates a variety of outcomes and use cases: see how merchants are earning six figures.

When to choose a single-purpose app and when to choose a native platform

Choose a single-purpose app (Channelwill or Downly) if:

• The need is narrowly scoped and urgent (e.g., add file download delivery this week, or add a post-purchase upsell quickly).
• Budget constraints or experimentation mean a tiny monthly cost is preferable.
• The store already uses a robust course or membership system and only needs a specific utility.

Choose a native platform if:

• The business plan relies on bundling physical and digital goods for higher lifetime value.
• Reducing support load and keeping customer accounts in one place is a priority.
• There is an intention to scale courses, memberships, or communities over time without adding new point solutions every year.

If the latter fits, merchants can explore Tevello’s feature set and pricing to compare total cost of ownership and potential revenue uplift: all the key features for courses and communities and a simple, all-in-one price for unlimited courses.

Practical Migration Checklist: From Fragmentation to Native

If a merchant decides a native platform is the right strategic move, a migration can be approached methodically.

Key steps (no specific order mandated; use as a checklist):

• Audit current tools: list apps and the exact responsibilities (downloads, license keys, upsells, community, memberships, subscriptions).
• Map customer journeys: track how customers currently purchase, access content, and authenticate.
• Identify must-have features versus nice-to-have features for the first launch.
• Back up digital assets and export member lists for reconciliation.
• Test on a development store: set up a staging experience, test purchases, access flows, and email templates.
• Communicate with existing members and customers before migrating to set expectations.
• Run a parallel phase (if feasible) to ensure all access is preserved during migration.
• Measure support ticket counts and conversion rates pre- and post-migration to quantify impact.

Merchant case studies show these steps work. Launch Party’s migration produced a meaningful conversion lift by simplifying the customer experience: doubled its store's conversion rate by fixing a fragmented system.

Final Comparison Summary: Which Tool Is Best For Whom?

Channelwill Upsell Cross Sell

• Best for merchants who need a simple, low-cost upsell/cross-sell tool that integrates with checkout touchpoints and increases AOV quickly.
• Pros: easy setup, targeted checkout and post-purchase offers, low-price tiers for low-volume stores.
• Cons: limited public reviews; not a solution for content delivery, membership gating, or course hosting.

Downly ‑ Sell Digital Products

• Best for merchants whose primary need is secure delivery of digital files and license keys with an affordable pricing structure.
• Pros: automatic file delivery, built-in license key management, affordable storage and paid tiers that remove branding.
• Cons: no public reviews; no native course, membership, or community features; may require pairing with other apps to create full experiences.

Neither app is a full course or community platform. For merchants who want to combine digital products with memberships, community interaction, and native checkout flows — or who want to bundle physical products with courses to increase lifetime value — a Shopify-native platform is usually the better long-term option.

Conclusion

For merchants choosing between Channelwill Upsell Cross Sell and Downly ‑ Sell Digital Products, the decision comes down to scope: Channelwill is an efficient option for checkout-focused upsells and post-purchase offers; Downly is a lightweight, affordable digital delivery tool best for files and license keys. Both have narrow, useful purposes, but neither is designed to host courses, run communities, or unify digital and physical product experiences within Shopify.

A single, natively integrated platform can close the gaps left by point solutions: it keeps customers on the merchant’s site, simplifies operations, and makes it easier to bundle physical and digital products. Merchants who have consolidated onto a native platform often achieve measurable improvements — for example, Crochetmilie sold over 4,000 courses and generated $112K+ in digital revenue by bundling courses with physical products, and Charles Dowding migrated 14,000+ members and reduced support tickets after moving off a fragmented stack. If a merchant wants to evaluate the consolidated approach, Tevello demonstrates how a Shopify-native model can unlock predictable revenue and better customer experiences.

Start your 14-day free trial to unify your content and commerce today. (a simple, all-in-one price for unlimited courses)

If a merchant wants to learn more about how a native platform integrates with Shopify checkout and review social proof, see that Tevello is natively integrated with Shopify checkout and read the 5-star reviews from fellow merchants. For features and deeper context on course and community capabilities, review all the key features for courses and communities and see how merchants are earning six figures.

FAQ

What is the main difference between Channelwill Upsell Cross Sell and Downly ‑ Sell Digital Products?

• Channelwill is focused on upsells and cross-sells at product, cart, and post-purchase touchpoints to increase AOV. Downly focuses on converting products into digital downloads and managing license keys and file delivery. Channelwill is not a file delivery solution, and Downly is not an upsell engine.

Both apps have small or no public review history. How should merchants proceed?

• When apps have limited reviews, merchants should test on a development store, verify support responsiveness, and confirm the app behavior with theme and checkout customizations. Consider exporting trial data and validating email delivery and access flows before launching.

Can these apps be combined to get both upsells and digital delivery?

• Yes, Channelwill and Downly can be used together: Downly for file delivery and Channelwill for checkout and post-purchase upsells. Expect additional operational complexity from maintaining multiple apps and ensure that checkout behavior remains consistent.

How does a native, all-in-one platform like Tevello compare to specialized or external apps?

• A native platform unifies checkout, content access, and membership management inside the store. This reduces friction for customers, lowers operational overhead, and enables seamless bundling of physical and digital products. Case studies show that merchants using a native model can increase revenue and reduce support load: for example, Crochetmilie generated $112K+ in digital revenue by bundling courses with physical products and Charles Dowding migrated over 14,000 members while reducing support tickets. For plan and pricing clarity, see a simple, all-in-one price for unlimited courses.