SquidU

(To unsubscribe, just scroll all the way down to the bottom of this email. Thanks!)

Trick-or-treat! It’s October 31st, that special day of the year where adults can be kids and kids can dress up like old men, if they want. Squidoo has been handing out goodies all week, but if you’re just getting a chance to log on, here are some of the treats you’ll find:

1. the new Video Module. Ooooh, spooky! Look for it under V in the A-Z module search. Now you can use Revver, Vimeo, and Howcast, in addition to the all-time fav, YouTube.

2. the Animoto module is a fun way to add some personal eyecandy to your lens. Use your own photos! Go ahead, check it out.

3. Loyalis has been a busy bee this week and has a new break-out site he’s been working on. Widget Squid hosts Squidoo-friendly widgets. Try adding a Slide.com presentation to your lens.

4. Speaking of photos, not everyone is a personal photographer. But Creative Commons and Flickr have teamed up to make it easy to find images you can use for free on your lenses (with credit, of course).

5. And we’re using the new Text with BIG Picture module to help you manage your dashboard and guestbook. (Are you using this photo-tastic module yet?)

And one more reminder: today is the last day to add your lens for Computer Learning Month for Charity and get the Squidoo = w00t geekgear.

So go out, have fun, and get your spook on. We’ll be back on Sunday, family day, for a special announcement about charity in November.

Happy Halloween!
~Kimberly
YOUR Community and Charity Organizer on Squidoo

Looks like some Halloween gremlins have arrived early.

Late last night, we were testing out some new features for our beloved SquidU Review, and accidentally sent out an empty post. Which means if you’re subscribed by RSS, an empty ping. If subscribed by email, an empty email.

Ghoulish, I know.

We’re sorry for the glitch. Everything is in working order now, and Kimberly will be back with her next installment of the SquidU Review as usual later this week.

Thanks!

Try as we might to deny it, Christmas is a top grossing season in the retail world, and things are no different on Squidoo.  While I hate seeing Christmas trees in Kmart in September, it’s never to early to dust off those Christmas lenses and get a head start on the buying season.

The top question on every lensmaster’s mind right now is:

How do I make a great Christmas lens that
1. gets mega traffic
2. gets mega talked about
3. makes mega moola?

There is no one Santa-sized secret to making great holiday lenses, but there are dozens of little ones, which is good news for you!  It means that anyone can create an awesome lens.  All you need to do is play along.

Here are some tips from veteran lensmasters for creating great Christmas lenses:

1. Pick one great item and promote the heck out of it.
If you had a popular, interactive lens on the hottest selling $50, $100, or $300 toy of the season, what kind of sales would that add up to for you?

2. Pick a niche collection for a niche recipient.
The best digital cameras for kids.  The cutest I Love Grandma sweatshirts.  All-natural treats for Fido.  And tag your lens well.

3. Put a spin on current events.
If you’ve heard about recent lead-paint scares, there’s no guessing why this lens is so hot right now: http://www.squidoo.com/toysnotfromchina

If you’re game for cashing in on the 2008 Christmas season, and making life brighter for our charities, stay tuned to the forum and blog for more details on upcoming tips, tools, and ideas for making life good this holiday season.

Happy Halloween!
~Kimberly
YOUR Community and Charity Organizer on Squidoo

I have a secret for you. I had never used the search feature on Twitter until we came out with the Twitter Search module earlier this week. In fact, I’d pretty much neglected my use of Twitter. Why’s that? Eh, better things to do, right?

Actually, I’ve found Twitter to be a great way to be “micro social.” For those of you too busy to sort through dozens of MySpace and Facebook requests, Twitter may be the answer. Life on Twitter happens in short blurbs, so 30 seconds a few times a day is all it takes to stay in touch and see what everyone is up to.

But anyway, what could people be chatting about on Twitter that I would want to archive and look at later? It turns out, a lot.

No doubt, Squidoo was the first thing I looked up. Squidoo and Twitter have a great relationship, between being able to tweet lens updates and add your Twitter profile to a lens. And lensmasters really are using Twitter to talk about their lenses. How fun!

I found all sorts of neat lenses. Like how to fall in love with broccoli and handle a miscarriage. Or find great Christmas crafts for kids, take a Christmas trivia quiz, and learn about Bill Bryson’s books.

Of course, all you have to do to get these kinds of results on your lenses is to add the Twitter Search module. And why you’re at it, why not try one of the other fun new modules we’ve released lately?

Amazon MP3
Amazon Search
Text with BIG Picture
Twitter Search
Get previews here.

See how our Giant Squids are putting these modules into action on new and existing lenses:

Convince Me
Coastal Pictures of Alaska .
Unusual, Unique, and One of a Kind Holiday Gifts
What is Guy Fawkes Night?
Who is Perry Lawrence?
Homesteading
Powerful Intentions and the Law of Attraction
Kevin So
Green Your Halloween

Don’t be the last one to create the best MP3 lens ever. Get started today!
Happy lensmastering!
~Kimberly
Your Community and Charity Organizer on Squidoo

Good Friday Morning!Thank goodness for the weekend, because after a week like we just had, I’m ready for some R&R.

First, did you get in on the $80,000 giveaway action? If not, too bad. We gave our lensmasters and charities fifteen days to help us give away $80k and it was gobbled up in three! An astounding 40,000 people stopped by to vote for their favorite charity. And the extra promo we got was amazing. Nevertheless, keep supporting your favorite charities by stopping by to say hi, and create a lens or two for them.

http://www.squidoo.com/squidoo-charity-giveaway

Second, we’re celebrating Computer Learning Month in October by making lenses for three technologically related charities: KIVA, Young Inventors International, and The American Institute of Architects. What can you do to share your computer knowledge and help those in need? Add your lens to our Plexo and you could end up featured for all your peers to see!

http://www.squidoo.com/computer-month-for-charity

Third for today’s issue, it’s almost Halloween! Ghost and goblins and all things scary have just four weeks to perfect their costumes, pimp their graveyard, and brew some eyeballs. The competition on SquidBoo is fierce, but there’s still time for more, if you can manage to keep your head.

And bonus, start thinking about the rest of the year. Making those Thanksgiving and winter holiday lenses early will give you a head start in the search engines and attract the attention of those of us who just can’t wait to start addressing Christmas cards.

My favorite thing about winter in Wisconsin is that I get to put up my snowman collection soon! But here’s hoping the gorgeous leaves stay on the trees just a little bit longer. Hmm, sounds like another lens idea.

Happy Lensmaking!
~Kimberly
YOUR Community and Charity Organizer on Squidoo