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Your website is like your storefront. What would happen if your customer comes to your business during business hours and and you're not there and the door is locked? That just wouldn't happen, would it? Then why do that with your website?

Here are three things that your website needs to do. If even one isn't working on your website, your website may be losing you a lot of business.

1. Your website needs to capture the name and email address of your first time visitor. This could be because of a free offer they want, or a way to connect, circle or follow you in any of the social media sites. Not giving them a way to connect with you is like your shop door being locked during business hours. You also need the same offer that links from the social media website to yours. Don't rely on social media to be your list, because they can close down or fall out of favour like MySPace.

2. Your website needs to provide immediate value that will persuade a prospect that you and your product or service will help them. No-one will jump right into a service if they don't know you or trust you and don't know your value to them.

3. You need to have interactive content like discussions that will draw a response from your prospects. This may not have to be on your website or blog, but can be on LinkedIn, Twitter or Facebook. Getting your prospects involved in your discussions, even if they disagree with you, leads to more links to your sites, and more click-through's. This will lead to larger conversion rates: It will convert visitors to prospects.

If your website does all three, it is working for you. If not, it is working against you. If there is no interaction with your prospect, your prospect will go away. Simple as that.

You need to set up your website so that it works with Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Ecademy and Youtube; getting you visitors and directing them to your website where they are converted into leads. If these work with an autoresponder, you have a lead generation system. You can set it up so that if you post something to your blog, it will automatically show on the social media networks. This will encourage visitors to your website where you can capture them with your offer. Your offer needs to be good enough for them to stop what they’re doing, and give you their email address in order to get your offer. This way, they can get to know you with your posts, and will convert to a customer when they start trusting you.