SquidU

Sharing Squidoo with friends and family can be daunting. What if they don’t get it? How can I explain it? What help can I give them?

Luckily, there are dozens of helpful lenses on how to use Squidoo.

In March, we’re targeting 9 groups of people in your community who can use Squidoo to increase their exposure, get found more often in searches, sharpen their technological IQ, promote their wares, and make more money. Groups like teachers, small restaurant owners, realtors, and mommies. If you happen to know anyone that fits into these categories, and we bet the biscuit you do, you’ll want to forward these emails and spread the wealth. And if they need a little help, THIS email is designed to give it!

Ready? Set? It’s learn about Squidoo time!

1. Step one - signing up.
Signing up for Squidoo is free, easy, and required to create lenses and interact with other lensmasters. Get started here. (We don’t require a confirmation email, so you can get started right away. Just be sure to read our Terms of Service.)

You’ll want to pick a username you love, because it’s permanent, and write down your username, email address, and password. (And double check that they’re spelled correctly!) If you need to reset your password, you can do it here.

2. Get to know your dashboard
Your dashboard is the first place you’ll go after logging in at Squidoo.com. For now, your dashboard will look different than the screenshots on Take a Dashboard Tour because you don’t have lenses or groups yet. Spend some time on the My Profile tab and be sure to fill in the very important PayPal address info. For more info on how this works, visit Payment FAQ and It’s Payday!

The My Lenses tab is important because it gives you access to all the features of each of your lenses. Once you create lenses, you can put your mouse over them to display a menu where you can edit them and access stats and more.

3. Make your first lens!
Making a lens shouldn’t be a stressful process. It should be fun! So while you’re making your first lens, keep in mind that you can skip whatever you want to or don’t understand, and come back to it later. There are three ways to build a lens, and you can test drive them all. For beginners, try the Magic Builder. (One pointer: pick your lens URL wisely. It’s permanent.)

Margaret is our First Lens Mentor, meaning she specializes in helping people create their first lens. Check out her lens on the topic, and if you still have questions, ask her by leaving a guestbook comment at the bottom of the page. After you publish a lens for the first time, read the important directions listed on the page that displays. If you miss this page, check out these links to learn what you missed:

• What is a WIP lens, and what do I need to know about it?


• Why is my lens still under construction?


• How do I get back to the edit screen for my lens?

4. Get help from other mentors
Just as there are specific parts to building a Squidoo lens, we have specific mentors to help you with those needs. Ener-G is our Module Mentor, and is an expert at using a variety of modules to do fun things. If you’re willing to learn a little code, TrekkieMelissa is our HTML/CSS Mentor. She’ll help you jazz up your lenses. When you’re ready to promote your lenses, jeffwend is our Lens Promotion Mentor. He has great tips on spreading the word about your lens.

5. Join the conversation
As a member of Squidoo you have automatic access to SquidU Forum! Just log in using your username (not email address) and password. If it’s your first visit, try searching for the answer to your question first. You can also do a search for helpful lenses at The Answer Deck.

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If you follow these five steps, and read all the helpful lenses, you’ll have gained access to almost all the tools you need to use Squidoo succesfully. You’ll know where to go for help, and learn about more lenses linked from these to find out how to take your lenses to the next level.

Now that you know how to help your friends and family become a part of Squidoo, forward this email to them so they can sign up for the SquidU Review. You’ll be the first ones to know how using Squidoo can help local businesses and people be great!

Enjoy the rest of your February, and here’s to a rockin’ March!
~Kimberly
YOUR Community & Charity Organizer

At Squidoo, we heart you. Yah, big time. To show our love, we’ve put together an ebook as our gift to you.

This little book is a collection of the best insights and stories some of our veteran lensmasters have for earning success on Squidoo. We hope you get as much out of it as we did! (We never stop learning from our lensmasters.)

Download the ebook here.

When you’re done, why not share the love and forward it to a friend you wish would make a lens, but hasn’t yet become a lensmaster. Just be sure to warn them - it’s addicting!

Lots of love, the entire SquidStaff

Happy Tuesday!

I’m almost embarrassed to say that I have 37 WIP lenses. Oops. That’s right, confession of the century. But seriously, if you’ve been on Squidoo long enough, chances are you have those lenses too.

You know the kind of lenses I’m talking about. You started them with good intentions, and never brought the total topic to fruition. They have a module, maybe two, or they’ve only been reserved and you haven’t done a thing with them. You might even have groups like this. How can you tell if they’re worth finishing or if the topic has passed its prime? Read on to learn what should stay, and what should go.

“Should I keep or drop that WIP lens?”
The first step in deciding what to do with a WIP or long abandoned lens is to figure out WHY you haven’t finished it.

1. Is it the type of lens that is going to require more maintenance than you can commit to? If so, you’ll be doing yourself a favor by dropping it. It may be an awesome idea, but if the lens gets stale, so could your reputation. If not, keep reading.
2. Is it spammy, really junky, or against Squidoo’s TOS? If you haven’t finished that lens on online blackjack, acai berries, or winning back your man, don’t bother. (Especially if it’s about all three.) Squidoo is very much about genuine content on real topics that real people are interested in. Yes, you can create a genuine lens on these topics, but since so many people abuse them, we’ve banned them for everyone. Visit SquidDon’t to find out if the topic is on this list.
3. Is the topic old news? If you originally started the lens about a special event that is now past, chances are you’ll never recover your efforts by continuing to build the lens. If it’s about a holiday that will come around next time, you can always start fresh later.
4. Do you really love the topic? If you started a lens just for the sake of having a lens, but really aren’t that into the topic, don’t stress yourself out by forcing yourself to finish it. Get rid of it and work on stuff you really do love.
5. Will it take more than an hour to finish? If you can get your lens to a publish-ready state in less than an hour (or 15 minutes a day for a week), go for it. But don’t just say you’ll do it, commit to it by writing it on your calendar. You probably waste fifteen minutes a day playing astronaut in the bathroom mirror anyway. Why not use that time to create a lens that will make money?

“Dropping a lens: should I delete or donate?”
Any lenses that you’re thinking of getting rid of but is still in WIP is a candidate for deletion. Your URL will go back into the pot, and another lensmaster will get a chance to use it. If you’re feeling generous, you can even post a note on the forum that it’s available.

Learn how to delete a lens.

“What should I do about the group I abandoned?”
Group URLs, like lenses, go back into the open pool once a group is disbanded. But there may be hope for your group if a little work has already been put into it. Again, here are some questions to ask when deciding whether to delete or donate a group.

1. Is it on an ‘honorable’ topic? By honorable we mean homeschooling projects, or best business books, or tips for saving the whales. If it revolves around miracle cures for infections or getting out of debt fast or your ringtone collection, forget it. These are on our SquidDon’t list.
2. Does it have any lenses? If you only have 10 lenses and they’re mostly yours, the group’s future may be dim. But if you already have 25-50 lenses by more than 5-6 other lensmasters, it means other people are creating lenses on this topic, which is a plus. Maybe one of these members would like to take the group over, or you can put it on the Lens Marketplace.
3. Is the HQ set up? If your HQ hasn’t yet been dressed for success, it’s hard to get someone else to adopt your group. They may be willing to approve or deny new lenses, but don’t want to have to recreate the headquarters page from scratch. If you haven’t filled in all the basics, it’s a good sign you’re ready to let go.

Note: to learn how to properly transfer a group to a new groupmaster, read this first.

Old lenses can get a new lease on life if you’re willing to put forth the work, and it feels good to have a clean dashboard. By applying these tips, you can make satisfying decisions on what to keep and what to drop, so you can continue making the best possible lenses.

Have fun!
~Kimberly
YOUR Community & Charity Organizer

PS - learn more on @squidoonews and leave feedback here.