SquidWho, a Sub-Community of Squidoo
SquidWho is one of Squidoo's most recent projects giving lensmasters extra tools and further exposure to traffic. Focusing on people, deal or alive, real or fictional, SquidWho is a specialized sub-set of squidoo's lenses. With an additional portal and a specialized look, SquidWho lenses stand out as different than normal lenses, while still having the easy to work with wizards and the opportunity to make money.
SquidWho Links
Official Pages
- SquidWho - A people-powered Who's Who on the Web
- SquidWho by Squidoo - The new front door for Squidoo lenses on people.
- SquidWho FAQ
- The FAQ to the SquidWho that is in beta-ish alpha. Or something.
Why SquidWho?
Why do we need SquidWho when we already have Wikipedia, IMDB, and About?
Those sites focus on the facts - a useful trait in a site if facts are what you are looking for. However, SquidWho allows for the wonderful world of opinions. Your SquidWho lens need not be a biography of the person with a list of all of the wonderful things they have done. It can be, but also you can say which of their movies were terrible, or explain where their career jumped the shark. You can also do fluff pieces about things that are interesting today, but of no real historical importance. You can even poke fun at them if you chose. You can have a SquidWho lens on someone you like or someone you hate. Whatever you want.- Those sites have public pages. But, not everyone likes to share. It's nice to have a place where your writing stays there until YOU say otherwise. "One lensmaster (that's you), one page."
- When was the last time you got paid for writing for wikipedia? SquidWho earns money - for a charity or for you! Time is money, and Squidoo knows it. Put a little time into a good lens, and you will see results.
SquidWho Examples
These SquidWhos are great examples of what you can do.-
JKRowling: Award Winning Author
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Joanne (Jo) Rowling has won a gazillion awards for the Harry Potter novels. Do you think she should win the Nobel Prize in Literature? Vote in my poll below. (And find out about some of the other awards she has won.) Update: The Swed...
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Walt Disney
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Walt Disney's work has had such an impact on the world that the mention of his name brings thoughts of animated movies, fantastic theme parks, and a certain superstar mouse, and it is easy to forget that behind the empire was a man with a vision. Thi...
Okay, so how's it work?
The Ins and the Outs about "Best Lens Wins"
To get started, go to SquidWho, or visit your Dashboard (as there is currently a yellow search box there).
Search for someone...anyone.
If no one made a SquidWho lens on the person you are looking for, then you can. SQUIDWHO WILL AUTOMATICALLY GET YOU STARTED! It will grab their wikipedia entry, some photos on flickr, some videos on Youtube, and some related items on Amazon. Just click "I Want It" on the right hand side, by the big orange flower, and you are on your way. You will be brought through a lens making wizard easy to understand and similiar to the squidoo wizards you are used to.
If someone already made a SquidWho lens on that person, then SquidWho will return the SquidWho lens on them WITH THE BEST RATING. That's right, it will bring you just to the best. BEST LENS WINS. That means 1) there can be more than one SquidWho entry on a particular person and 2) traffic will automatically get to your lens if you have the best rating without having to pick your lens off a search results list.
So, lets say you look up a name and someone already made a lens for them...and it stinks. They didn't do anything with it more then what is automatically generated. That's okay, you can make ANOTHER! That's right, SquidWho allows more than one lens on each person. The highest rated lens is the one that SquidWho will direct people to, but they will have the opportunity to see them all. Plus they can be viewed through Squidoo. So, make your lens great, and your rating will probably go above the other guys crappy lens - you will take over that slot. And, traffic will automatically go to your lens when that name is searched.
Search for someone...anyone.
If no one made a SquidWho lens on the person you are looking for, then you can. SQUIDWHO WILL AUTOMATICALLY GET YOU STARTED! It will grab their wikipedia entry, some photos on flickr, some videos on Youtube, and some related items on Amazon. Just click "I Want It" on the right hand side, by the big orange flower, and you are on your way. You will be brought through a lens making wizard easy to understand and similiar to the squidoo wizards you are used to.
If someone already made a SquidWho lens on that person, then SquidWho will return the SquidWho lens on them WITH THE BEST RATING. That's right, it will bring you just to the best. BEST LENS WINS. That means 1) there can be more than one SquidWho entry on a particular person and 2) traffic will automatically get to your lens if you have the best rating without having to pick your lens off a search results list.
So, lets say you look up a name and someone already made a lens for them...and it stinks. They didn't do anything with it more then what is automatically generated. That's okay, you can make ANOTHER! That's right, SquidWho allows more than one lens on each person. The highest rated lens is the one that SquidWho will direct people to, but they will have the opportunity to see them all. Plus they can be viewed through Squidoo. So, make your lens great, and your rating will probably go above the other guys crappy lens - you will take over that slot. And, traffic will automatically go to your lens when that name is searched.
SquidWho Lenses
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Hillary Clinton
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She's Hugh and Dorothy's daughter. She's Hugh Jr. and Tony's sister. She's a Yale Law School graduate. She's Bill's wife. She's Chelsea's mom. She's a former First Lady twice, wife of a governor and a president. She's the junior senator from the state of N...
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Oprah Winfrey
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Oprah Gail Winfrey is thought to be the most influential woman in the world now. She is also considered to be the most philanthropic African-American of all time and one of the most successful entrepreneurs in the United States. Oprah, as she is kno...
What are the eligibility guidelines for subjects of a SquidWho lens?
We're not worthy ! ... or are we?
This is the great part. There aren't any! If your subject is a person, real or fictional, they are eligible.
This is squidoo, not IMDB...they don't have to have anything to do with show biz.
This is squidoo, not wikipedia...they don't have to meet some unwritten guideline of "encyclopedia worthy importance".
Whether a president, a poet, an actress, or just your sister, they are worthy of a SquidWho lens. They can be a brain, an athlete, a basket case, a princess, a criminal....(sorry, I flashed into an 80's movie for a second there).
But, a word to the wise...all SquidWho lenses need to be people or characters. Businesses are not people. If you have a SquidWho lens that is not on a person (real or fictional), it will eventually be moved out of SquidWho and be left in regular Squidoo. Squidoo is a "who's who", not a "what's what".
Bands though they aren't just one person, are allowed as SquidWho lenses.
This is squidoo, not IMDB...they don't have to have anything to do with show biz.
This is squidoo, not wikipedia...they don't have to meet some unwritten guideline of "encyclopedia worthy importance".
Whether a president, a poet, an actress, or just your sister, they are worthy of a SquidWho lens. They can be a brain, an athlete, a basket case, a princess, a criminal....(sorry, I flashed into an 80's movie for a second there).
But, a word to the wise...all SquidWho lenses need to be people or characters. Businesses are not people. If you have a SquidWho lens that is not on a person (real or fictional), it will eventually be moved out of SquidWho and be left in regular Squidoo. Squidoo is a "who's who", not a "what's what".
Bands though they aren't just one person, are allowed as SquidWho lenses.
You need not be a huge fan of them...
Anti-Fan is Okay !
Having an interest in a person makes for a great SquidWho, whether its a favorable interest or not. If you can make it interesting, and possibly funny, then it will be worthwhile.-
Barry Williams will do anything for $50
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Ladies and Gentlemen, I hereby set forth to prove: Barry Williams will do anything for $50. It is a big claim, I know, but I think that after you have taken a few moments to examine the evidence below, you will come to the same conclusion. He'll do...
Why "a new frontdoor"?
A new portal; a new gateway; a new "In"
Why not? The more the merrier. The more portals to a lens the more traffic will arrive there. It is understood that people know about Squidoo, and that they don't know about SquidWho (but they will), but remember SquidWho is a sub-community of Squidoo. Your SquidWho lenses are also available as lenses always have been through Squidoo. This portal is cleaner and slimer (that's slimer, not slimier) then squidoo. It is more google-esque, if you will (and I will). That may appeal to a whole new set of readers .
Again, as it bears repeating, that the new frontdoor is not the only door. Its sits right next to the other front door (which I realize makes for a silly looking house, but we are all for silly here at Squidoo).
Again, as it bears repeating, that the new frontdoor is not the only door. Its sits right next to the other front door (which I realize makes for a silly looking house, but we are all for silly here at Squidoo).
Another Few Examples
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David Bowie
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"Don't you wonder sometimes 'Bout sound and vision Blue, blue, electric blue That's the colour of my room Where I will live Blue, blue" Sound and Vision, that is exactly what David Bowie is all about and the man has certainly been gifted with bot...
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Frank Zappa
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I once set out to buy every Zappa album (there's more than 60 of them). I own quite a few LPs and CDs, but haven't completed the mission yet. What's great about Zappa is that you can always go back, sometimes many years later, listen to an...
How can I turn my regular Squidoo lens into a SquidWho lens?
I'm sorry to break the news, but, you can't. SquidWho lenses must be SquidWho from the start. You can not convert a lens to a SquidWho lens. It is not like a group you are joining, it is a totally different wizard.
But, cheer up...you can always make another lens.
But, cheer up...you can always make another lens.
SquidWho Groups
Groups are a great way to get people to your site.
Once you have your SquidWho lens up and going (after it has been put into the ranking system and is live), use groups to drive traffic to you. Many groups specificly for SquidWho lenses are out there. KimberlyDawnWells has put together a good list:-
SquidWho Groups
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Wowzers! Who knew SquidWho would be so popular? After just a week online, hundreds of our great lensmasters have created thousands of people pages. Sports people, book people, business people, president people, and other people just...
Personalize It!
Good grief people! Why have a lens if you don't have anything on it. If they just want a wikipedia article, they will go to wikipedia. That needs to be just a part of what you have to offer. Say something. There must be a reason that you chose that name, of all the people on earth to look up, and claim as a lens of your own. If you went to that much effort, then tell us why.
Why do YOU like them - or why you hate them? Why do you think they are important? What can you tell us that Wikipedia can't? Wikipedia has millions of people combing over its contents and deciding what to throw out. SquidoWho is your chance to show the world what YOU think is important or interesting.
Add a few modules; develop the ones automatically generated. If you don't, then no one will stick around. People will quickly learn the layout of an undeveloped SquidWho lens...and they will jump right over it. No one wants to read and look at what a computer thinks is important, simply because it is not always accurate. Human hands are needed. That's the whole point of Squidoo in the first place.
Apathy for the subject makes for the most boring lenses. If you don't care about it, then don't bother with it. Don't waste people's time. It's rude. Do something with the lens or don't start it in the first place.
Why do YOU like them - or why you hate them? Why do you think they are important? What can you tell us that Wikipedia can't? Wikipedia has millions of people combing over its contents and deciding what to throw out. SquidoWho is your chance to show the world what YOU think is important or interesting.
Add a few modules; develop the ones automatically generated. If you don't, then no one will stick around. People will quickly learn the layout of an undeveloped SquidWho lens...and they will jump right over it. No one wants to read and look at what a computer thinks is important, simply because it is not always accurate. Human hands are needed. That's the whole point of Squidoo in the first place.
Apathy for the subject makes for the most boring lenses. If you don't care about it, then don't bother with it. Don't waste people's time. It's rude. Do something with the lens or don't start it in the first place.
A Few More Examples
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Maya Angelou
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She has seen sorrow, she has experienced pain, yet she inspires all to press on and enjoy the life that has been given to them. Maya Angelou can touch people's hearts, and make them see things they have not seen. Words are tools, and Maya...
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Chihuly Glass Art
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Check out this great glass Art from Dale Chihuly.
What people are saying...
- Who is Marcus Goedden? SquidWho internet online | ViktoriaDanyi
- ViktoriaDanyi: Who is Marcus Goedden? @marc_goedden SquidWho internet online you deserve more http:/...
- day 26: how to make a squidwho lens… about yourself by seth godin
- it's quite likely you don't have a blog with as much traffic as i do (yet), but the squidwho page st...
- Seth's Blog: Who is Philip Roth?
- A few weeks ago, Seth Godin, in promotion of his new biographies project, Squidwho, raised an issue...
- Squidoo Lens of the Day » Blog Archive » SquidWho IS Pema Chodron?
- So we started SquidWho. It's the first open directory of everyone, big or small. Write an entry abou...
What's the deal with the Acumen Fund?
By default SquidWho lenses donate its royalties to the Acumen Fund, which is an amazing organization that supports enterprises that increase income, increase assets and create jobs for the four billion people on earth who earn a few dollars a day.A new SquidWho page will have a module at the bottom explaining this. Of course, since SquidWho is part of Squidoo, and in Squidoo you pick where the money goes, it is still your choice. It would be nice for you to continue to give to the Acumen Fund (since together what a difference we could make), but to each his own.
Send the money to the charity of your choice, including your own pocket. But, if you choose not to give royalties to the Acumen Fund, please get rid of the module that says you do. Don't mislead people, it's rude.
Guestbook
Do you have any more tips for us? Any questions? Ideas?
submit
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Reply
- Ramkitten Ramkitten Jun 3, 2009 @ 2:31 am
- Great, thank you! I'm considering using some of these other Squidoo templates and wanted to know a bit more about this one. You told me what I needed to know.
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Reply
- Joan4 Joan4 Aug 25, 2008 @ 8:18 pm
- I am learning SquidWho - and really having fun with it! 2 or 3 in progress now! Great format! Thank you for the information and how-to!
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- triathlontraining triathlontraining Jul 11, 2008 @ 12:29 pm
- Well, if you make an artist SquidWho, feel free to look up the SquidWho Artists group and add your lens.
Great info here! thank you. :)
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Reply
- FoxMusic FoxMusic Apr 28, 2008 @ 10:27 am
- Thanks for the Insight on SquidWho
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Reply
- cboyd cboyd Apr 16, 2008 @ 4:57 am
- Squidwho is amazing, although there's not enough hours in the day to use Squidoo for all my idea's
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