Rocket Mom Lenses by Pastiche

Get these custom Rocket Mom border graphics free: Pastiche Family Portal, Clip Art Borders

There are several specialized teams and groups on Squidoo: Giant Squids, Squid Angels, Community Organizers, Greeters, and now Rocket Moms. The requirement that a member must be a mom of any age or mom to be has generated interesting discussions on the SquidU forum. I've been following the commentary - some men are wondering why they can't be part of the group (there are men who are single parents doing similar work with families). Others muse about having a Rocket Men group, while some are a bit miffed. Mostly it's been tongue-in-cheek commentary and idea-throwing and all that is good for the entire community. What needs to be said is that Squidoo Rocket Moms is more than just a special invitation, new branded lens template, and mothers-only group.

The Rocket Moms project created recognition for a huge marketing segment that's part of the community on Squidoo. Marketing stats tell us that women and mothers make up a significant portion of the consumer market and work at home population. Futhermore, that the group is growing steadily, especially in the upper age brackets.

The largest segment of the Squidoo community falls into that market segment and they're the biggest traffic source for Squidoo. Translated into general terms it means that the majority of Squidoo members and visitors are women, many of them mothers or grandmothers. Squidoo is about marketing - on many levels - and about building a tribe and generating traffic-building content. And Rocket Moms is a tribe that's at the heart of the Squidoo community.

This doesn't mean men don't contribute brilliantly to Squidoo - because they certainly do. It doesn't mean women who aren't mothers have less value on Squidoo. Actually, quite the contrary. Without other lensmasters and their brilliant lenses and insight Squidoo could become a far less stimulating community. It simply means that the majority of Squidoo lensmasters and visitors are most likely new to the computing and being part of an interactive online experience and the['re jumping into Squidoo wholeheartedly. Why wouldn't staff wish to take advantage of that enthusiasm and potential to create a tribe within the community that's generating traffic, eyeballs and clicks?

Providing an environment for mentoring and encouragement to this rapidly expanding sub-group benefits everyone on Squidoo. It's a win-win for all lensmasters from where I sit. I look at the Rocket Moms team experience as a marketing pilot project. It could become a model for other sub-segment groups within Squidoo much the same as less formalized groups - those of you who build lenses from the various Squidoo-alt branding templates. Without diversity in the community Squidoo might be far less interesting - and have far less traffic overall - than it is for lensmasters and visitors alike.

I'm pleased that I was invited to participate in the first Rocket Moms team - I'm a niche content developer, a Giant Squid lensmaster and yeah, a mom/grandmother. But even if I hadn't been one of the "in group" I'd still find this project exciting and brilliant from the standpoint of a marketing experiment that will have ripples and benefits to all of us who swim in the Squid Sea. I see great potential from this - it can help to grow Squidoo exponentially at a faster rate. That will mean more visibility, credibility in the market place, and more traffic to great lenses.

Isn't that what we all want?