Squidooing for Fun (and Profit?)
Written by Michael on August 3, 2006 – 1:49 pm -
I’ve been researching an interesting site called Squidoo.
Squidoo is the brainchild of Seth Godin, of Idea Virus fame, and I think it holds some interesting possibilities for you, whether you’re a Dream Jobber in search of ideas for your career, or whether you’re doing business online and are looking for additional ways to market yourself or business.
Squidoo lets you create something it calls a lens, which is sort of like a baby blog in that you create one-page sites that list resources and your commentary about a passion or field of interest.
Take a few minutes and browse around the site — if nothing else, I think you’ll come away with some interesting things to think about as you continue in your quest to find your dream job.
If you’re already a Squidoo lenscrafter, please let me know by adding your lens address (and, optionally, your name) in the comments section to this post.
I’d also like to learn how you’re using the Squidoo tools.
Happy squidooing!
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August 3rd, 2006 at 11:22 pm
I have been Squidooing mostly for fun. But I think there is a lot of potential for using Squidoo for profit, especially if you already have an online business, blog, etc.
A lot of lensmasters are using it to draw attention to their other projects.
My current lenses deal with Harry Potter and are at:
Harry Potter Fan Art
Waiting for Harry Potter 7
Harry Potter Music
The Giant Squid
August 4th, 2006 at 8:55 am
I started my first Squidoo lens on April 10. Since then I’ve created lenses on about 25 topics, but there are some lensmasters who have hundreds. The typical author has a handful. so you can see it’s addicting. It is a good personal networking tool. About half of my lenses are on tech topics (my business) and half fun/hobby. Here are samples of each:
http://www.squidoo.com/benjaminfranklin/
http://www.squidoo.com/pcrecommendations/
http://www.squidoo.com/hydroculture/
August 4th, 2006 at 10:05 am
I have lenses at http://www.squidoo.com/fibrocize and http://www.squidoo.com/antiwar (There are others, but I’ll just list two.)
August 4th, 2006 at 10:44 am
I’d be anxious to learn more about each of your Squidoo experiences.
Please supply details of how you got started, why you focus on what you do, and any tips for Squidoo newbies.
Also, can you share any specifics on how Squidoo can help you monetize your work online or somehow help it grow?
Thanks,
Michael
August 4th, 2006 at 12:32 pm
re Focus - focus on what you know or enjoy and want to know about. If your knowledge or passion doesn’t show through the lens doesn’t work.
re getting started. Pick any topic. Build a simple lens. Avoid making the lens about links (boring). Add a picture or two. Add a couple of content modules. Add some good links, with your explanation of the value of the link. Add an Ebay or Amazon module just for kicks. Look at it the next day. Edit, then post about it in the SquidU forums.
re money. I’m clueless. Make no money with my lenses. IMHO Don’t think the Squidoo model can lead to direct decent $. Use lenses to network, link to your other blogs, sites, etc. It’s a networking tool.
Remember, if you enjoy it its not really work.
August 7th, 2006 at 3:45 pm
I mostly use Squidoo as an way to focus on a subject I’m interested in learning about (Altered Art Techniques & Tools) or as another form of advertising (The Neil Gaiman Reader, JaZilla: Popped Culture).
There are a few fun ones in there as well (She Bop: The Best Song About Maturbation Ever) and a few promoting bands, radio stations, and the like.
It can be fun, and frustrating, but I can’t say that you’ll make much money directly.
~ My Squidoo Lenses ~
August 29th, 2006 at 5:13 pm
I started a Squidoo lens as a supplement to my blog. The idea was to use it as a place to link to popular previous posts, as well as to provide links to websites that are not on the blog. I also put up some of my sketches to add a little interest to the lens. Basically, I use it as a place to add info on the subject of Bicycle Design without cluttering my blog too much. Of course, the first lens was fun so I made a couple more.
I link to my Squidoo lenses from my blog, which is probably why my Bicycle Design lens has been ranked in or near the top 100 for quite a while. The blog gets a fair amount of traffic from Squidoo and vice versa. My blog is just a hobby, not a real money maker, but I think Squidoo and blogs work well together.
James
http://www.squidoo.com/bicycledesign/
http://www.squidoo.com/bicyclecommuting/
http://www.squidoo.com/bicycleracing/
September 9th, 2006 at 7:33 am
Squidoo provides a creative outlet that’s fun. The framework is easy to use.
It doesn’t look like you can make any money at Squidoo, but there is the goal of reaching to top 100. I get a kick out of seeing the number of visitors to the site go up.
September 18th, 2006 at 10:19 am
I love Squidoo. You may not make much money from Squidoo itself, but you can sell your CafePress items, bring traffic to your blog, and otherwise advertise your wares. I just sold something “through” Squidoo, so there’s lots of potential there.
Christy
More Than Mommy
BabyCrazy
Rubber Ducky
November 11th, 2006 at 11:52 pm
I started creating lens about 2 months ago. I like the easy of use and the flexibility of this program. It is quick and also may generate some revenue for charity. The interaction is also a great feature. I like to hear comments from readers. It lets me focus on what they are interested in besides just bloviating. The other nice feature is the polling.
My most successful lens so far is:
I hope to create many more lens…
-Jack
December 18th, 2006 at 6:14 pm
Hi
I’ve just started using Squidoo and it is somewhat compulsive. There is a lot of potential here both as a publisher, site promoter and affiliate/adsense earner.
I love the way that Squidoo is able to easily combine web 2.0 content so the sum of the parts do outweigh the whole. I’m not saying I’ve got there yet, but I will sooner or later!
My Squidoo lenses:
http://www.squidoo.com/egofatigo/
http://www.squidoo.com/chippingcampden/
http://www.squidoo.com/textmefree/
http://www.squidoo.com/adsensesites/
(Eclectic to say the least! Lol)
Steve
February 23rd, 2007 at 10:01 am
My first squidoo lens started two weeks ago and I’ve had huge success with it. It’s got a great ranking a good feedback. I’ve enjoyed building it, and have mostly done it for fun.
Feel free to check it out and rate it. There’s also a link to a free eBook which is very popular. Enjoy!
http://www.squidoo.com/the-law-of-attraction-comprehensive-guide/
Chris
June 2nd, 2007 at 1:15 pm
Still waiting for the profit, but I can tell you that I’m having a lot of fun on Squidoo! I’ve only been squidoodling for a few weeks, but I’ve learned a lot. I agree that having a passion for the topic helps in producing a better, more interesting lens. Explore the top lenses to see what works and what appeals to you, then incorporate those ideas in your own lenses. Like you would do for any good website, it’s good to go back and update and edit on a regular basis. Narrow your focus into a niche and build lenses around that niche. Research a topic you like and build a lens. Choose a word and build a lens around it. Just try it, you’ll love it!
Susan52 on squidoo
July 16th, 2007 at 3:07 pm
I wandered onto Squidoo, trying to look for ways to promote my website. Just made my first lense, although it is on poker. Not sure how it will help me, but it is fun and addicting (haven’t gotten any work done today!!)
roosfineart.com
http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/rooster7667
July 27th, 2007 at 5:56 pm
I found squidoo by accident and discovered it was a fun alternative to the free blogs out there. My first one was on making smoothies and sharing my favorite smoothie recipes. I quickly figured out that it’s best to reorder the modules from the default settings and use lots of images and keep adding good content to quickly rise in the rankings. It helps also to tell all your friends to sign up on squidoo so that they can rate and post to your new lens. And unchecking the Max will give your lens a less cluttered look by using 2 columns rather than 3. My lens was up to #18 in it’s category in only 2 weeks but no revenue yet. Next I’m going to try adding it to a group and using my lens url in forum postings to get more traffic to it.
Free Smoothie Recipes
August 14th, 2007 at 8:39 am
I’ve created a Squidoo lens on Easy Web 2.0 E-Learning In Your Classroom, with information for teachers on how they can use the latest technology to make more exciting lessons for their students. It focuses on the use of sites like Google Earth in conjunction with the TeachBits Content Authoring Tool to create interactive experiences in the classroom.
Squidoo is a great site because it makes it easy to put together different content modules and create a fun, interesting page on a topic.
August 28th, 2007 at 7:23 am
For a summary of my earning history on Squidoo, go to my home page at http://www.squidoo.com/jack_c_lee and scroll to the bottom.
-Jack
November 1st, 2007 at 2:25 am
I ADORE Squidoo! I am totally addicted! You can see my lenses here.
I have definitely seen an increase in traffic both to my website and my eBay store. There are sooo many ways to make affiliate income as well.
January 23rd, 2008 at 5:18 pm
I just published my first lens on squidoo, it is at http://www.squidoo.com/concreteslabsongrade if that looks bulky, I shortened it with tiny url to http://tinyurl.com/3xaq75 if that’s any better. My primary motivation was to drive traffic to my cafepress store and other sites, other sites I have include:
http://www.clintonsupporter.com
http://www.clintonsupporter.org
http://www.clintonsupporter.info
http://www.clintonsupporter.us
http://www.obamasupporter.org
http://www.mycrazymugs.com
http://www.crazymugstore.com
Most of those are just parked, but they all generate a little revenue, and it’s the little bits added up that make it worth while.