Valentine's Day Tip for Squidoo Lensmasters

It's Valentine's Day.  Why not change up your lens theme and even your lens intro photo to match the occasion ... like I did here on this lens.

Squidoo has themes (lens backgrounds) for most major occasions and seasons. St. Patrick's Day and Easter are coming up, so keep this tip in mind for those special days, too.

BONUS Quick Tip:  Love your friends and family?  Of course you do!  So why not send them a special Valentine's Day greeting that includes an invitation to join Squidoo.  You'll find three to choose from on this page. And if you haven't joined Squidoo yet, here's a greeting from me, with love.

How do you celebrate Valentine's Day on Squidoo?  Let me know in a comment below!

Halloween Shoppers Haunting Squidoo!

But wait, that's a good thing!

Has your Halloween lens traffic picked up lately? Mine has and, I'm happy to report, so have Halloween sales. But I'm looking forward to more!

I was just glancing at the calendar, counting the number of shopping days, specifically weekends, before Halloween.  The timing actually favors last-minute shoppers this year, which means that it favors online sellers, too.  Amazon Prime allows for procrastinating people to order on the weekend of the 26th and still receive their costumes and other goodies a day or two before Halloween.  That's a good thing for those of us who feature last-minute Halloween ideas and easy trick-or-treat costume solutions. 

Savvy shoppers won't wait until the last minute, though, and the savviest of the savvy will be making their choices and placing their orders this weekend and next.  I'll admit that I still have a few Halloween lenses that are scary-out-of-date and need some freshening up.  How about you? 

Will you be updating your Halloween lenses over the next few days, too?  Or are you already set for shoppers?  If so, consider adding a lens designed specifically for last-minute Halloween shoppers.  It could pay off in scary-good sales this year!

Image courtesy Squidoo.com

Is It Too Late to Make a Halloween Lens?

No!  It's never too late to make a Halloween lens.  This visit graph proves it.

This is from one of my costume lenses.  The first October it didn't do a lot (just a little "melted witch" puddle on the graph) but the next two, look at those nice high "witch hat" peaks!  I'm looking forward to the next one, which is trending upwards now (end of September) and hopefully will peak nice and high by the end of October.

Lesson:  Think long-term with seasonal lenses.  And watch for witch hats on your visits graph.  Visits begat sales, the most fun part of the Halloween shopping season!

Creating Happy Endings

There's been a lot of debate over the past few months about making personal Squidoo lenses that include storytelling.  Some believe that their readers don't want to be bothered with anything "personal," so they balk at the whole idea, preferring to stick with just the facts, ma'am.

While every lens doesn't have to be about you, it's important that lenses include a story of some kind.  Our objective should be to engage our readers so that they will want to read all the way to the end. 

As usual, Seth Godin says it best about storytelling, in the next to last sentence in this piece (well, in the whole piece).

Do your lenses tell stories?  Are your readers engaged all the way through?  Sounds like creating happy endings is a goal every lensmaster should strive for.

Seasonal versus Evergreen Lenses

Really, there's no competition between seasonal and evergreen lenses.  Every lensmaster needs to have both.

My evergreen lenses are the meat and potatoes of my Squidoo business while the seasonal lenses add spikes of interest at various times around the calendar.  This is the week every year that my How to Make a Cow Costume lens peaks (thanks to a certain restaurant's annual Dress Like a Cow promotion).  The interesting thing is that the cow costume lens then continues to get traffic through the fall and all the way to Christmas  I'm thinking state fairs followed by Halloween of course and then nativity plays at churches.  For whatever other reasons people like to dress like cows, I am certainly grateful.

It's good to introduce an evergreen component to a seasonal lens.  Of course Christmas or Valentine gift lenses should be easily adaptable to birthday and other year-round gift-giving occasions.  And it should be easy for costume lenses to be adapted to a dress-up play for kids topic, or for a gypsy costume lens being made to appeal to belly dancers or fans of the Bohemian style, both of which are popular all year. 

Just as we enjoy an unseasonably warm day in February or a break from the heat in August, that touch of evergreen in a seasonal lens can send us surprise sales now and then.  But why not work a bit to make a seasonal lens perform all year long.  A good investment of time?  I think so.

Do you have any secrets to making seasonal lenses perform as evergreen?  I'd love to read your comments.

One Best Tip

Someone asked me today for one tip for building a successful lens.

I gave him this one:  Own your topic.

Then I gave him a bonus tip:  Proofread! Then do it again.

Success may be subjective, but objective misspellings and silly errors stand out and can make us look very unprofessional. Owning our topic allows room for forgiveness for some of those silly errors that all of us make from time to time. 

Now Is the Time To Build (Lenses)

I really liked this post that Bonnie wrote for SquidooHQ a couple of days ago.  She makes an important point about the fact that things change.  They do!

And if there's anything in this world we can count on for change, it's all things internet-related.

I've been hanging onto old Squidoo lenses, or maybe I should say lenses with old topics.  I "archive" them, explaining that this page was created during the 2008 election process (for instance) and is here for historical reference.  That, I've come to decide, is so bogus!  There's nothing on most of these old lenses that anyone wants to read or wouldn't find elsewhere if they did want some historical information.  There are other lenses, too, that I just don't care about anymore.  (There, I said it.)  They're baggage, dragging me down when I notice them there on my dashboard whispering, pleading, "Let me go!"

It's time to delete some of those oldies-that-were-formerly-goodies, cut the cord, say "sayonara" and move on.

Yes, it's a bit like "empty nest syndrome" - my lens-kids leaving home makes me sad - but the good news is that I can keep making new lens-babies on current topics that people actually care about.  And "people," in this case, includes me.  No more maintenance, no regrets.  Those babies are going bye-bye!

New, updated, useful, original content.  That's the part of the internet equation that stays the same.  Time to build it!

Image property Susan52

About Me (You, too.)

Now that the "About Me" and "My Lenses" modules have been retired, here's another way to help your readers learn more about you.

In the custom bio box on the top right of the lens, add a "call to action" at the end of the custom bio you write for each lens.  Simply ask readers to "Click on my picture to learn more about me and see what else I've been writing about."

That's how I'm going to start updating my custom bio boxes.

I like this idea.  Should have thought about it before!

SquidPeer Pressure

When I was a young squid with little experience and even less confidence, many of my best lensmaking habits were developed from watching what successful lensmasters did and then adapting their methods on my lenses.  It's a great way to learn, one I recommend often.

Occasionally, though, there would be practices that I didn't feel particularly comfortable with.  More often than not, though, I jumped on those bandwagons anyway.  After all, those people had been around longer and had more lenses and more success than I had at the time, so they must be right, right?  Not necessarily.

Peer pressure is a very powerful motivator for doing the wrong thing, even in a writing community like Squidoo.  The trap, however, lies in doing something simply because everyone seems to be doing it. 

Here's what I learned: Instincts rarely lie.  If it doesn't feel right, don't do it. Just don't.

Content Rules

If you write on Squidoo then you're surely aware of the recent conversations revolved around making our lenses personal with just the right ratio of affiliate links to unique content.  Keyword content factors in as well - no one wants to be punished for keyword stuffing, especially when it's unintentional. 

Here's a conversation about Zazzle content on our lenses and how to make our Zazzle-centric lenses acceptable to both Squidoo and to the search engine powers-that-be.  These Zazzle lens tips can be applied to the rest of our sales-oriented lenses and product reviews as well.  And it's not just Squidoo and the search engines, it's our readers that we should be concerned about.  If we don't offer unique, useful, interesting content to them, then we're not doing our job very well. 

No matter how you stand on the great Squidoo debate these days, it's hard to deny that the old maxim of "content is king" still drives e-commerce and, really, online publishing in general.  I think that's the bottom line in all this.  What do you think?

Ask and You Shall Receive

Thanks to the lensmasters who are making their intro pictures 250x250 square.

You make my life so much easier!

xoxo

Using the Black Box Themes on Squidoo

Want the "black box" modules on your lenses to coordinate with the lens's theme?  Now, in one simple step, it can!

Just edit your "black box" module and choose "theme" instead of a color.  When the lens is published, the black box background will coordinate with the lens theme itself. 

I've done this on several of my lenses and just love how it looks.  Today I updated a lens using the "clouds" theme and updated the black boxes on that lens.  Love how they look and wanted to share one here just in case you haven't tried doing this yet.  Isn't it pretty?  (You can see it on the lens here.)

Have you used the "theme" option for black boxes on your lenses?  Which is your favorite?

Don't Forget Thanksgiving!

It's November 1st and already the online atmosphere has switched from the orange and black of Halloween to the red and green, chestnuts roasting on an open fire feel of Christmas.  Amazon has opened its Black Friday deals store.  Walmart has countered with its Gift of the Day and Ultimate Online Specials.  Gift shopping season is underway!

But don't forget Thanksgiving!

As you're creating your Celebrate gift guides (and I hope you're doing that) feel free to add a Thanksgiving-focused lens or two or three.  Thanksgiving may not be a huge money-maker, but there are plenty of people out there who need new turkey platters, table linens, fresh side dish recipes, cute Thanksgiving outfits for baby, and more. 

Think about how your family prepares for and celebrates Thanksgiving and turn some of those things into lens ideas.  Your audience may not be huge (although you might be surprised) but if it's targeted very specifically, your attention to this almost forgotten holiday may pay off for you in a good amount of traffic and hopefully even some nice Thanksgiving sales.

What comes to mind when you think of Thanksgiving?  Have you made a lens about it?

Spode turkey platter available here.

Squidoo Quick Tip of the Day - Save Your Changes!

Tip of the Day:  When you're in workshop mode, creating or editing a lens, make sure to "apply" or "save" once you've made changes.  This particularly applies to editing the workshop tools on the right sidebar, everything from the lens theme to your bio, to "How to you want to get paid?" and Dashboard Labels and tags. 

If you edit a module in the body of the lens, you have to save or cancel to continue editing.  There's no warning if you make a change in one of the categories on the right.  It's very easy to make those changes and forget to save them.  Always save and then publish the lens so your changes will take effect.

I don't have to tell you how I know.  :)  Hope your short-term memory is better than mine!

"Liking" Our Neighbors on Squidoo

One of my goals for the week is to reach the 10,000 mark on "lenses rated."  I'm at 9749 right now.

That's a lot of lenses, but when I compare my numbers to those of Tipi (35,466) or Jaguar Julie (24,826) or KimGiancaterino (15,842) or OhMe (12,919), my number seems like small potatoes and my efforts over the years pale in comparison to lensmasters like these (and certainly there are others) who give so much back to the Squidoo community. I really appreciate their setting the bar nice and high!

There are lots of ways to be a good neighbor on Squidoo, and visiting and rating lenses with a simple click on the "like" button is akin to serving cake to your fellow lensmasters.  Leaving a thoughtful, kind comment while you're at it is the icing on the cake and only takes a few seconds more. Not surprisingly, there's a trophy for that, too!

What's your number?  Have you earned your Epic SquidLiking trophy yet?  Is it a goal?  If it wasn't before, I hope now that it is.  It's good to be a good neighbor.    

Man, Machine, and Better Squidoo Lens Titles

What do "man" and "machine" have to do with choosing titles for your Squidoo lenses?

You'll find the answer in The 2 Most Important Elements of a Great Lens Title, a post I wrote yesterday for the SquidooHQ blog.

I mentioned recently that SquidooHQ is the place to find great Squidoo tips, and this post is no exception.  Pardon me if it appears that I'm tooting my own horn, but I'm basing this statement on the excellent feedback this man/machine post has received.  So if you want to learn how to create a better title for your lenses and (most likely) get more traffic as a result, then just go read the post.

Then I'd love if you'd come back and leave a comment here to let me know your thoughts on the subject.

Time to Clean House on Squidoo

It's housekeeping time on Squidoo.

There's a new quest on my dashboard today - maybe you have it, too - called "Clean Up a Lens Day."  The point is to take a lens that is sitting down low on your dashboard and give it a nice freshening up.  In fact, the quest lens includes a list of 10 ways to clean up an old lens.  Fabulous tips!

If this quest doesn't apply to you, then bless you my friend.  You're a better squid than I.  As for me, I've actually been (slowly) working on freshening a few old lenses recently.  I feel better for it and the lenses I've updated have shot up in lensrank like Howard Wolowitz's rocket.

Will you accept the challenge and complete the quest?  Let me know, and feel free to leave a comment that includes the lensrank of your cleaned-up lens before and then after its freshening.  (Woohoo in advance for that!)

Where to Find the Best Squidoo Tips

Want to learn more about Squidoo and how to make great lenses?  Then check out tips like these on the SquidooHQ blog.

All this time I should have been writing (and intended to write) tips like these right here on my own blog, but (no excuses) it seems I just didn't get here nearly as often as I intended.  Now, though, I'm writing tips (among other things) for the SQHQ blog on a regular basis and really enjoying both the writing and the feedback. 

The longer I'm on Squidoo, the more I discover that Squidoo (including the HQ blog) really is the best place to learn about Squidoo.

I'll keep writing here and I hope you'll keep reading.  Just don't overlook the source of all the excitement and information, and the best tips ever, Squidoo itself. 

What Are Your Squidoo Goals for February?

Can you believe the first month of the year is gone already?  Around here we've been having spring-like weather so it seems that we should have turned the calendar to April rather than February!  Be that as it may, now is the time to firm up some February goals.

Traffic to my lenses has picked up recently, partly due to Valentine's Day shoppers.  It's time to make some quick updates to my Valentine's lenses to take advantage of the buyers who may visit during the coming week to 10 days or so.

Additionally, it's time to look ahead to the next few buying occasions and do some lensmaking and updating with those in mind.  St. Patrick's Day, Easter, and Mother's Day are the next few special occasions on the calendar and one of my goals this month will be to see what I have to do to freshen lenses up for those holidays. 

Of course I always advice people to review their profiles, bio, and featured lenses at the beginning of the month.  I recently updated my bio and I'll be changing featured lenses soon since interest in Valentine's Day topics will drop off.  I'm thinking Spring!

How about you.  Any Squidoo goals for February that you'd like to share?

Image by YesterdayCafe on Zazzle

A Delicious Lens Intro

Just had to share the intro on this yummy lens by new lensmaster theSEOmama. 

Go read it then tell me your mouth isn't watering and your stomach isn't frantically transmitting "Bake these NOW!" messages to your brain.  Or is it the other way around?  

Oh, who cares.  Just go read this delicious lens intro and mark it as a great example of how not to lose readers in the first 30 seconds of their visit to your lens.  Then, while the oven is preheating, compose a fabulous intro for your next new lens.