Making More Money

When it comes to money, it's easy to get mixed messages. "You can't take it with you." "Can't buy me love." But at the same time, "Money makes the world go 'round" and "Diamonds are a girl's best friend."

Luckily, things are pretty straightforward on Squidoo. Share what you know, talk about a topic you care about -- and maybe make a little money along the way.

Similar to most affiliate programs, the Squidoo co-op gives you the chance to earn royalties from your lenses. With a twist: You can choose whether to pocket the proceeds, contribute to a group charity fund or donate to a specific cause.

If you're more interested in spreading ideas and traffic than making money, just send your share to a charity, where every bit counts. But if you're looking for some ways to supercharge your lens's earning potential, read on! (And if you have additional ideas, please let us know.)

Eight Tips for Making More Money

1. Make more lenses, make more money.
Common sense, right? If you only have one lens, chances are you'll be able to buy a cup of coffee with your royalties. If you have two lenses, you probably doubled your earnings. And so on. Of course, some lenses will work better than others. And this isn't to say that you should make lenses willy nilly. But if you're interested in approaching a specific topic, consider doing so from a number of different angles in a number of different lenses. Or, make lenses on all your favorite stuff, not just one thing. If you cast your net wide, we're betting that drop in the bucket will turn into a trickle, and then even more.

2. Don't spread the wealth.
If you have multiple lenses, put them on the same team! Don't send a dollar here, a dollar there. Instead, set all your lenses's royalties to cash -- or assign them all to the same charity. Increments add up, and bit by bit you can make a difference.

3. Give Ebay a hug.
Why? Because the Ebay module is one of Squidoo's top moneymakers. Embrace it.

If you're an Ebay seller, you can easily highlight your own items and auctions. Reach traffic you've never met, sell your own wares, and get a bonus for every item sold.

Even if you're just a bidder, auction watcher or don't have an Ebay account, you can still recommend great Ebay items -- and earn a commission when someone buys the product from your lens!

4. Amazon is amazing.
The Amazon module is another of the top-earning modules in Squidoo. Almost every topic or subject has books that focus on it. Pick your favorites and highlight them in your lens. Keep in mind that it helps to recommend fewer titles -- see below for more on that idea -- and add personalized descriptions to each book. (See this article for more Amazon tips and tricks.)

5. Score with the Superstore.
Drawing on hundreds of affiliate merchants (like Starbucks and Golfsmith and the StarWarsShop) -- and offering thousands upon thousands of product options -- the Superstore is, well, kinda super.

6. Work your recommendations.
Sometimes it's easier for a reader to take action and buy one highly recommended book instead of sorting through 20 haphazardly selected books.

Two things are happening here: The power of recommendation. And the benefits of limited selection. Make sure that the products you're suggesting are the best of the best -- what you'd really recommend to someone at a dinner party. And be sure to tell people why you like them. Read more on recommendation in this SquidBlog entry.

Also, don't be shy about offering multiple versions of the same kind of module. Instead of having one really long affiliate module, maybe offer three or four with fewer products per module -- and a much tighter focus.

7. Play with your placement.
Experiment with putting your moneymaker modules at the top, in the middle, and even repeating them throughout your lens. See what works well where.

8. Refer a friend.
And finally, don't forget the bounty bonus! If you invite a friend to become a lensmaster, when they earn their first $15, you both get a $5 bonus. Refer a new lensmaster today!

Zonks!

The Learning Library has been replaced by The Answer Deck. What you seek is there, Neo.