Why you should be making a lens now
I realise that sometimes you don't really have to time to sit down and work out how to get your knowledge out there - you may have your own site online and that takes enough of your time. But what about backlinks? How about another place on the web which points to your site and increases your web presence? And how about a profile page on yourself?
One of the easiest place to write on the web is here on Squidoo
Squidoo
If you don't already know, Squidoo is a free social networking site in which you build pages, known on Squidoo as 'lenses'. Plus, Squidoo is a revenue sharing community, it carries advertisments and shares the money with you.
There is no cost to you whatsoever to write a 'lens', the pages are indexed quickly and you can add your link back to your own site.
Use the knowledge you already have about your topic, start up a lens in an afternoon, and finish it in the next day or two .
I'm certainly not going to tell you that it takes 5 mins to create a lens, it's more like 3 hours for a basic and creditable outcome which gives the search engines another backlink to your website. I will spend 5 hours to create a lens.
So ... a couple of afternoons to have a lens online which can be earning you a modest income. More importantly, it puts your name out there.
When you first start .....
Your Account - Bio
1. When you first start .. write something in your bio! A few lines will do for the moment, something like "Hi - I'm Mary from Murrumbidgee and I love Meerkats!". If you don't have a short bio ready it's time you had one - this is your opportunity to pen a few lines about yourself which will capture attention to who you are, what you do, why you do it and how you go about doing it. Remember, this will be displayed across the web.
2. Upload a photo. If you have none of yourself suitable for the moment, use an image of some sort. If you don't upload an image, you will have the default chosen by squidoo - an orangey thing which is merely a placeholder. Don't have that default orange squid!
The Builder
When you look at how to create a lens you will be confronted with the "Magic Builder". This is a little tricky for beginning users and I suggest that you click on the link in the upper right of the Magic builder. This will set a regular template for you to work with. Much easier.
Or just use this link: Start Here
Make your first lens now!
Quickly! Before that idea of yours goes away
Come on, stop putting it off.
Take ten minutes to start the process by setting up your account (it's instant - you need only an email address).
While you're making your first lens, is there's something you don't quite understand - you can skip whatever you wish and come back to it later.
Give me a shout when you've started. I'm happy to give you a hand with your lens.I really am.
To get in touch with me, you will find the Contact Me Button on my Lensmaster Page
What do I mean by WYSIWYG?
WYSIWYG (wiz-ee-wig) is an old-fashioned terms these days but I still find it the easiest way to describe the process.Squidoo gives you easy Modules, like little building blocks to put your content into. This text is inside a text module.
There is a variety of other modules from which you can choose. There are modules for eBay, for Amazon, Cafe Press and other money-making sources. Modules for polls, for adding links, for adding blog feeds, videos and plenty more.
Just click to add a module, add your content in the form provided and that's it!
It's all so incredibly easy!
Make a lens about yourself
Get the Google Juice flowing
You can make a lens about yourself - a profile page for the web that will turn up when sombody googles your name.
At squidoo they are lightheartedly called lensographies and they're a smart way to raise your web profile and make some GoogleJuice - the ethereal substance which flows between web pages via their hyperlinks (in both directions!). Just what we want!
My Profile Lens
Here's an example of a profile page - my own lensography.When someone searches for you, what will they find? Make a page about yourself and you know what's going to turn up in the search results
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Susanna Duffy
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My love affair with the Web began in the Southern Spring of 1997. Our romance is still hot! When I can be dragged away from my computer I'm a Funeral Celebrant, produce a syndicated talkback radio programme, direct and perform in community theatrica...
Add a Video in Three Minutes
And I mean literally
It literally takes 3 minutes max to add a video. After you've found the one you want to feature of course :)
The video module supports YouTube, Howcast, Aniboom, Godtube, Metacafe, MySpace TV Videos, Vimeo, Revver, and Veoh.
Amazon Affiliates
Use your own, or use squidoo's
The Amazon modules (yes, there are a few of them) will automatically choose a product based on the keywords that you feed into it. The payout rate for Squidoo's affiliate links are in the top bracket and many people say it makes more sense to use the Squidoo link than your own - especially if you're not a top Amazon seller and get a lower rate of payout. It's up to you.
The following module is the Amazon Spotlight.. I've chosen a favourite DVD to feature in this module.
Beowulf and Grendel in the Amazon Spotlight
Simple stuff to do!
Out of allegiance to Hrothgar, Beowulf leads a troop of warriors across the sea to rid the settlement of the marauding monster. The monster Grendel is a creature of immense flesh and raging blood driven by a murderous vengeance.
Beowulf's willingness to kill on behalf of Hrothgar waivers ~ when he thinks that the King knows more than he is telling..
Beowulf & Grendel
Amazon Price: $12.49 (as of 01/02/2010)
A rollicking adventure that's part fantasy, part legendary fable, part horror story
Beowulf & Grendel is a tale where vengeance, loyalty and mercy powerfully entwine.
A story of blood, sweat and beer..
Plenty more Amazon Modules
And all ridiculously easy to use
But now I'm going to use a Links Voting module, still on the subject of Beowulf and with the addition of another Hero, the great Kupe.
The Links Voting Module
(Called a Plexo)
In this module, visitors can vote for their favourite, or even add their own link.
Beowulf and Grendel
Beowulf and Grendel takes you into a world of fabl more...1 point
Beowulf, Slayer of Monsters : Heroic Tales
Beowulf, great Skandinavian warrior of the sixth c more...0 points
Kupe the Navigator : Legendary Hero
Five thousand years ago, the first voyagers set ou more...0 points
Turn an Image into a Polaroid
What about a Duel?
This is a great little interactive module
When will you do it?
Bookmark Me
Tell me when you've joined up!
or just leave a comment
Once you sign up, you can leave me a message here and I can find you instantly from this GuestBook module.
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Reply
- BabyHarley BabyHarley May 3, 2009 @ 4:25 am
- Thanks for your reply over in the forums!
The Top Lens Feed
Squidoo also gives you a feed of the lens in your portfolio. Another simple WYSIWYG that gives you one line of code (the feed) which you can place anywhere on the web. I put mine on blogs.
I have a lot of lenses, so I've set the feed here to my five most popular.
Fetching RSS feed... please stand byAbout Susanna Duffy
This is nicely indexed on google :)
Lensmaster susannaduffy has been a member since September 25 2006, has rated 4,228 lenses, favorited 164, and has created 214 lenses from scratch. This member's top-ranked page is "The Ten Top New Years Resolutions for 2010 - Trying to Improve". See all my lenses
Check out these great lenses...
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- The Ten Top New Years Resolutions for 2010 - Trying to Improve
Every year it seems that the same Top Ten New Year resolutions crop up. Why? It's obvious. Because they're just so hard to keep! I have trouble keeping my resolutions, but this time I'm determined to finally do better. Success is not an acci... view lens -
- Is it Plagiarism?
If you have to ask if you're plagiarising, you most probably are. Apart from intentional thieves, fraudsters and cold blooded scammers who know perfectly well what they are doing, there are some people who have literally no idea that plagiarism i... view lens -
- New Year Customs and Traditions Old and New
Whatever the custom, whatever the country, no matter when or where we live, the New Year signifies a new start, a new life. We take the opportunity to throw out the mistakes of the past year and start anew. We wish each other good luck and promise ou... view lens
A Blog Feed Module
Another lovely module!
This is the feed from my squidoo-related blog. It took under 3 minutes to set up this module and it automatically refreshes itself.
Fetching RSS feed... please stand by
