How I Rate Squidoo Lenses

1 - I can do better 2 - Jury's out 3 - Pretty darn good 4 - Splendiferous 5 - Awesometastic by 30 people | Log in to rate

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Awesometastic...or Jury's Out?

Star ratings are a popular topic of conversation in the SquidU forums. Every lensmaster has their own approach to rating lenses. Here is mine.

It's a simple checklist to reward attributes that make a great lens and add to the quality of the Squidoo community. Likewise, it deducts stars for things that dilute Squidoo's credibility or waste my time as a reader.

This is the most objective way I've found to keep my lens ratings consistent.

Basic Philosophy - Lenses Start At 3 Stars 

Squidoo defines 3 stars as "Pretty Darn Good". So I'm assuming right off the bat your lens is pretty darn good before I even look at the content. It can go up or down from there based on the rating criteria listed below.

If I started at 5 (Awesometastic) that would mean I'm assuming the lens is top notch. That devalues the 5 star rating and is not fair to the many great lenses that truly deserve 5 stars.

If the lens is about something fun and goofy I may start it at a 4 (Splendiferous). You're not really trying to educate me or sell me something...the lens is for entertainment so the bar's a little lower.

Please Note...

If the sole purpose of the lens is to sell me something, I am much stricter on the rating criteria.

Banner Ads At Top of Lens? -1 Star 

If the first thing I see when viewing a lens is banner ads, especially unrelated ads, a star is falling.

There are some really good, informative lenses out there which are spoiled with annoying unrelated banner ads at the top...typically for link exchanges. Even if the ad is on topic, give me some real info first before hitting me with ads.

I'm not against banner ads...I use a few myself. But they are related to the topic, mixed in with the content and not at the top of the lens.

Beg For Ratings At Top of Lens? -1 Star 

Why do people do this? I'm a fellow lensmaster, I know what ratings are, I know where to find them and how to enter them. It's safe to assume that most lensmasters appreciate ratings from visitors. So why do some lensmasters insist on cluttering up their intro or first module by begging people to rate the lens before they've had a chance to read it??

It looks bad. Remember, your lens might be the first Squidoo lens a new visitor ever sees. Make a good impression. Make good use of your reader's attention.

If you want to remind people to rate your lens after they've read through it then go ahead and place a tactful reminder at the bottom of the lens. No stars off for that.

Did I Learn Something? +1 Star 

I love learning. Doesn't matter if it's a topic I'm not normally interested in or even agree with you about. Teach me something and the stars will follow.

Default Module Titles? -1 Star 

Nothing says lazy like the words "New Guestbook Module". Take a few seconds and change those default module titles.

Cool Layout/Lens Design? +1 Star 

The folks at Squidoo have done a good job of providing a consistent lens look while still offering us the flexibility to be creative and innovative.

Well designed lenses where the information flows or creative (and smart) use of an HTML trick are how a lens will wow me here.

Member Of Unrelated Groups? -1/2 Star 

Joining groups of everyone or a lot of unrelated groups doesn't add any value to the lens or to Squidoo. It's more clutter.

Got Good Content? +1 Star 

Original content rocks! It doesn't matter what combination of text, pics, video, links, etc you use as long as it builds an informative, thought provoking or entertaining lens.

Talking about your personal experience with the topic and putting your expertise into words is a solid way to build great content.

Generic Pre-Generated Lens? -1 Star 

Do you create a new SquidWho or SquidLit lens but never change what Squidoo pre-populated for you? That's lame. C'mon, change the poll responses, enter some original text and make it your own.

All Text Is From Wikipedia? -1/2 Star 

Yes, Wikipedia has great information and Squidoo has modules to easily pull in text from the site. That doesn't mean you should exclusively rely on it for all of your content. The Wikipedia module exists to help support your content, not take it over.

Write some original text (not a paraphrase of Wikipedia) on your lens. If you can't do that then you're probably not an "expert" in the topic.

Unique or Interesting Topic? +1 Star 

One of my favorite things about Squidoo is discovering new things or learning new stuff about a topic I'm already interested in.

Content Doesn't Match The Title? -1 Star 

I like to look at lenses that have interesting titles and I expect the lens' content to match the title. If your lens has a cool title like, "How To Swap Out The Transmission On A '69 Firebird In Ten Minutes Flat" and it's really about another lame MLM scheme then you've totally wasted my time.

Is The Lens Annoying? -1/2 Star 

Unless it has a good reason, if the lens does any of the following then it could be considered annoying at some level.

1. YELLS AT ME IN ALL CAPS.
2. Makes my eyes hurt with lots of crazy colored text.
3. Is one very very very long text module with no break.
4. Every other word is a typo.
5. Rambles from topic to topic.

You Paid Me $100 To Rate Your Lens: +25 Stars 

Cha-ching! Money talks!

I'm kidding, totally kidding.

Seriously, if you feel the need to bribe someone to rate your lens, then you and your lens both have serious issues.

Allows Guestbook Spam? -1/2 Star 

Many good lenses are spoiled by a guest book that has become a billboard for spam. Full of links to unrelated lenses or web sites this is more clutter.

Worth My Time To Visit The Lens? +1 Star 

Hopefully I learned something on the lens. If not, it still could have been useful and worth my time. Maybe it led me to an interesting link or I saw something that gave me a chuckle or started me thinking in a new direction. The possibilities are endless.

Rate My Lens Rating Strategy 

Loading poll. Please Wait...

How do I resolve 1/2 Stars? 

Yes, sometimes I'll total this all up and end up with a 4.5 rating (quite often actually). Squidoo doesn't give me a way to assign 4.5 stars. So, do I select 4 or 5 stars?

This is a judgment call. If the overall feel of the lens and its information are good then I'll go with the higher rating. If I think that there are big opportunities for improvement then I'll round down and give it the 4.

Do I Give 1 Star Ratings? 

Rarely. Even a one star rating gives the lens a small, temporary lensrank boost. For a lens to get a one star from me, it has to be pretty bad and probably spammy so it's unlikely I'll reward it by giving it any rating.

A Few Favorite 5 Star Lenses 

Here are some lenses built by other lensmasters that I have rated 5 stars. They're all examples of great lenses. Chances are you're already familiar with them.
featured lens Sundials: How to Make a Sundial, How they Work and Some Sundial History

Many people think of sundials as nothing more than historical curiosities. How wrong can you be? Sundials are fantastic things to have in your garden, incredibly beautiful focal points just like any urn or garden sculpture. But sundials are so much m...

featured lens Wingsuit Pilots

Wingsuit skydivers can achieve forward speeds of more than 100 mph (160 km/h). They look like flying bullets, and they can glide with such precision! Also their high-performance bodysuits allow them to slow down their descent to as low as 30 mph (48...

featured lens Moss Farming

Moss can be a filler on top of a potted plant, it can be a little accent in a garden, or a lush, full-fledged replacement for a lawn. This is my first year moss farming notebook and diary complete with pictures along the way.  It's got a lot of...

Final Thoughts 

I try to stick as closely as possible to this checklist but sometimes I will make a judgment call to give a higher or lower rating. Usually because there was one attribute that really stood out above (or below) the rest.

Anyway, this is how I rate lenses, your approach is probably different. Feel free to give this a try and let me know how it works for you.

Let's Hear From You... 

What do you think of this lens rating strategy? What are your thoughts on star ratings?

Lensmaster

CCGAL wrote...

I probably use a lot of the same criteria as you do, but it all happens practically unconsciously, so I go with what I feel at the end of my lens visit without pausing to examine what it is that's making me feel that way. Except, of course, if the lensmaster is a newbie and I'm left with a less than 3 star feeling, in which case I'm much more likely to send him or her an e-mail via the "contact me" on his/her profile page and offer helpful suggestions before rating.

Still, it was good to read a codified list of things to look for when rating a lens, and so I'm going to lensroll this and assign some stars to the top of the page. Good job!

ReplyPosted April 16, 2009

Lensmaster

poutine wrote...

Very well explained lens on how to rate Suidoo lenses.

ReplyPosted February 23, 2009

Lensmaster

Jon_Lyles wrote...

great lens.

ReplyPosted January 17, 2009

Lensmaster

Maripa wrote...

You speak with authority, because you know what Squidoo is inside out.
Your system to vote however is a little strict for people who just started
with. Squidoo is a place to teach and to learn. I learned a lot
from this lens,so I give you ***:)

ReplyPosted January 11, 2009

Lensmaster

SlapThatBass wrote...

Good Info...

ReplyPosted December 07, 2008

Lensmaster

Happiegrrrl wrote...

Thanks, Mac33! I loved your phrase "a star is falling!"

I am new to Squidoo and, frankly, feeling a little like I'm walking around in the dark. Came here in search of actually finding out how I physically rate other people's lens'!

Guess what...I just figured it out(simply press the star that says "Awesometastic"(at least in this case - hahaha) at the top of the page. I feel so much better..... But it does seem to me that the Squidoo FAQ/answer section and search tool is a little.... scatterbrained.

ReplyPosted November 05, 2008

Lensmaster

a_willow wrote...

Interesting. You obviously gave this a lot of thought! Me? I go by my feeling! In many cases, if I find lens not worth 5 starts, I'll skip rating and commenting!
But Joan is right! This would be a good guide how to improve lens! So, you got 'rolled to Fresh Squid FAQ!

ReplyPosted October 13, 2008

Lensmaster

Mac33 wrote...

Hi Shaynne. You can go back and change the rating you gave a lens at any time. The overall rating shown is the average of all ratings the lens received. That's why you see 3.5 or 4.5 stars on some lenses.

ReplyPosted September 28, 2008

Lensmaster

Shaynne wrote...

Yeah, finally I know how to rate a lens! I saw someone asked and you answered. Thanks a lot! Now I'm wondering if someone actually gave say--the dreaded 1 or 2 stars--can't someone give their rating and then a better 4 or 5 star show up next time? I'm mean, even this lens shows it's rated 5 stars by 9 people. What if someone rated it something else? Does it just not show up because it's already been given the highest rating? What the dealio? Anyone, anyone?

Thanks

ReplyPosted September 27, 2008

Lensmaster

Eclectic_Muse wrote...

This is a great way of looking at it. It's nice to see other perspectives and criteria.

I'm going to check all my lenses based on your specs...

ReplyPosted September 23, 2008

 
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