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A8ch
Joined: 24 Jun 2005
Posts: 615
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# Posted: 16 Feb 2009 01:38 · Edited by: A8ch
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Would you believe I just published my first squidoo lens today. How's that for "better late than never!" (Squidoo was launched back in March 2006). 
Once I got a grasp of how the modules functioned and the various ways they could be used, the lens was much easier to create than I had imagined. Naturally I'm flushed with the excitement of accomplishment, but I'm a long way from being considered an expert Squidooer. I'm probably missing and/or misapplying some features. (Hey, I'm new at this).
So, I humbly appeal to the seasoned lensmasters here to take a look when it's convenient, point out any cracks you find in my lens and then suggest ways I could repair them. I thank you for your feedback.
The link is in my signature.
Hermas
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WealthyWAHM
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Joined: 2 Apr 2006
Posts: 129
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# Posted: 16 Feb 2009 09:17
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Hi Hermas,
I just checked out your lens and I think it looks great! One thing I might suggest is that you make your links stand out a bit more... Maybe bold them? OR, you could add a most important thing module and add the link there?
Also, be sure to take advantage of adding the lens to different groups- that can really help your traffic....
Kepp up the great work though and you will be a giant squid on no time! 
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A8ch
Joined: 24 Jun 2005
Posts: 615
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# Posted: 16 Feb 2009 12:10
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Hi Christy!
I've made the links bold as you suggested. They are now much easier to read. (Slapping myself and asking, "Why didn't I think of that?") And I'll be taking a look at different groups I could hook up with. That's a very useful idea.
Thanks very much for your input!
Hermas
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Sonni
Member
Joined: 10 Jun 2008
Posts: 417
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# Posted: 16 Feb 2009 12:13
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Great lens I starred it, favorited it and commented on it. I'm sure it will be worth all the effort you put into it.
Sonni
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A8ch
Joined: 24 Jun 2005
Posts: 615
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# Posted: 16 Feb 2009 13:03 · Edited by: A8ch
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Thanks for all your support, Sonni!
Now the real marketing work begins.
Hermas
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WealthyWAHM
Member
Joined: 2 Apr 2006
Posts: 129
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# Posted: 16 Feb 2009 13:23
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A8ch: Hi Christy! I've made the links bold as you suggested. They are now much easier to read. (Slapping myself and asking, "Why didn't I think of that?") And I'll be taking a look at different groups I could hook up with. That's a very useful idea. Thanks very much for your input! Hermas
Great! Glad you found my comments useful, Hermas.
As far as the linking to groups is concerned, I think people underestimate the value of internal backlinking. In the instance of Squidoo, the site is so full of pages that it's worth your while to connect yours to others of the same topic for a little extra traffic back.
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Sonni
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Joined: 10 Jun 2008
Posts: 417
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# Posted: 16 Feb 2009 21:23
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Hermas
Isn't it fun to get a new toy to play with? Marketers call them tools, but they're really toys. Shhh it's a secret...
Sonni
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Vishal P. Rao
Joined: 23 Jun 2005
Posts: 1036
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# Posted: 17 Feb 2009 00:04
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Nice lens Hermas!
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RuthStewart
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Joined: 27 Jan 2009
Posts: 10
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# Posted: 17 Feb 2009 08:43
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Hello Hermas,
I thought you have made a good lens there, well done.
I don't know if you know but you can check the "health" of a lens when you are making it, there is a button at the top with a heart shape beside it. It is very useful for picking up things a person has overlooked, I find.
Best wishes,
Ruth
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A8ch
Joined: 24 Jun 2005
Posts: 615
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# Posted: 17 Feb 2009 15:35
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Ruth,
Thanks for your comments. I also appreciate the tip about the health button.
Why is it that we often don't notice (or explore) things that are staring us right in the face? I always thought that health button would take me to health-related lenses, so I never clicked it. That's what can happen when we ass-u-me things.
Hermas
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A8ch
Joined: 24 Jun 2005
Posts: 615
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# Posted: 17 Feb 2009 15:41
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Kendi: I think you did an excellent job for your first lens. Hopefully the search engines will pick up your lens and you will start getting a higher ranking.
Thanks Ken. I am looking forward to a boost in rankings too.
Hermas
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mountainmom5
Joined: 30 Aug 2007
Posts: 2060
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# Posted: 17 Feb 2009 23:45
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Welcome to Squidoo Land, Hermas! I just favorited and rated your lens.
Have you seen Newbie Shields 'how to lens' ?? I use it almost every time I build a new lens - absolutely love it...
Have fun Squidding...
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A8ch
Joined: 24 Jun 2005
Posts: 615
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# Posted: 18 Feb 2009 13:50
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Hi Mountain,
I appreciate the support. And yes, I've seen Newbie's how to lens.
It's brimming with information. I referred to it often in creating my own.
Hermas
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mountainmom5
Joined: 30 Aug 2007
Posts: 2060
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# Posted: 19 Feb 2009 11:23
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I still don't even understand all of it, but I use what I can wrap my brains around and someday it will all make sense to me....
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Julsy
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Joined: 23 Nov 2008
Posts: 150
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# Posted: 19 Feb 2009 14:22
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I actually have had much better luck with my hubpages, my squidoo would just never place on any search engine that I could find? Maybe because I am a little more simple minded, LOL! and I think that Hubpages is a little simpler than squidoo, but I will keep trying!
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gridellas
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Joined: 19 Feb 2009
Posts: 172
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# Posted: 19 Feb 2009 21:36
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WOW! I can't believe that was your first lens. I put a comment in there for ya. I made mine just a few days ago and to be nice I will say uuummmm it is lacking I am still trying to figure out the smaller issues of the lens. I haven't figured out how to get pictures or where to find pictures. I have played with the flickr thing but with no progress. Is there any way someone could help me find the "how to lens" by newbie shield? I should would love some tips or how to's. Squidoo is still going over my head.
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A8ch
Joined: 24 Jun 2005
Posts: 615
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# Posted: 20 Feb 2009 00:46
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Gridellas, thanks for your kind words.
I spent a few weeks reading up on Squidoo and looking at many lenses before I even began working on mine. I'm still discovering new things myself. Rome wasn't built in a day, so don't stop working on yours till you get it looking the way you want.
You can view NewbieShield's lens here. It is loaded with tips and lots of really cool stuff you could incorporate into your lens. Plus, he'll answer any questions you may have.
All the best with your lens, and have fun with it!
Hermas
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gridellas
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Joined: 19 Feb 2009
Posts: 172
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# Posted: 20 Feb 2009 09:36
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Your encouraging sentiments are appreciated. I will continue to read up on Squidoo and keep that frame of mind. Nothing happens overnight.
Thank you for the link. I put it in my favorites so I will be able to refer to it frequently.
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newbiz02
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Joined: 24 Jul 2008
Posts: 134
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# Posted: 26 Feb 2009 02:12
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you have a nice lens there, but do you have any backlinks yet?
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Newbie Shield
Joined: 22 Sep 2007
Posts: 2232
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# Posted: 26 Feb 2009 08:47
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Hi Hermas,
I interacted on your lens over a week ago but just found this thread today.
Excellent lens!
I find the Advantages, Disadvantages, and Important things to look for sections to be especially helpful. Nice hand-coded table of contents and "To Table of Contents" links throughout the lens. You've put a lot of work into the lens and it looks great.
Only suggestion I have is to get rid of one of the two table of contents instances. I suggest keeping the one that you've created yourself (nice job) and ditching the blue one just above it to avoid redundancy.
While in edit mode you can do this by going into your intro module (first module at the very top) > Table of contents tab > select the off radio button.
~Newbie Shield~
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A8ch
Joined: 24 Jun 2005
Posts: 615
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# Posted: 26 Feb 2009 12:20 · Edited by: A8ch
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Newbie Shield: Only suggestion I have is to get rid of one of the two table of contents instances. I suggest keeping the one that you've created yourself (nice job) and ditching the blue one just above it to avoid redundancy.
Shield,
Thanks for pointing that out. It's done!
When our Squidoo master speaks, the
little squids listen!
Newbie Shield: Nice hand-coded table of contents and "To Table of Contents" links throughout the lens. You've put a lot of work into the lens and it looks great.
I appreciate your feedback... and your how-to-lens.
newbiz02: you have a nice lens there, but do you have any backlinks yet?
Thank you, newbiz02. And yes, I've already secured some backlinks.
Hermas
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Phil Stones
Member
Joined: 1 Oct 2008
Posts: 122
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# Posted: 27 Feb 2009 12:19
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Some good points here and some nice lenses guys!
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A8ch
Joined: 24 Jun 2005
Posts: 615
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# Posted: 6 Mar 2009 11:49
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Hello Squidooers,
Breaking News!
It was exactly 18 days ago that I published my first squidoo lens in the "How-To & Education" category, and today I notice it has pushed its way inside the top 100 lenses to rank #73 in that category. At the moment the lens ranks #718 overall.
As of February 1, 2009 there were nearly 900,000 lenses in the Squidoo system. I have no idea of the approximate number of lenses in my particular category, or even how to locate that information if it exists. Perhaps the Shield knows how to get that data.
I clearly understand that this picture could be flipped tomorrow. Still, I thought I'd update interested readers on my Squidoo adventure thus far by sharing this fleeting fact.
:: Taking a sip from my champagne glass to toast the modest achievement ::
Hermas
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WealthyWAHM
Member
Joined: 2 Apr 2006
Posts: 129
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# Posted: 6 Mar 2009 12:58
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That's great, Hermas! It is certainly exciting when a little hard work put into a lens starts to show in your stats.
I had a lens on Bakugan that I worked on in conjunction with my 7 year old son (he's a huge Bakugan fan so I figured it was a good way for us to both get something out of the knowledge gained from the research we did on the subject) that went all the way to 17 in its group at one point and I can remember how exciting that was for both of us!
My son ended up enjoying our little project so much that he asked me to create a squidoo account for him, which I did, so he now creates his own lenses on toys and games.
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Newbie Shield
Joined: 22 Sep 2007
Posts: 2232
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# Posted: 6 Mar 2009 14:18
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Hermas,
Thanx for the virtual champagne.
1921 Dom Pérignon is it? Ahhh, nice and silky. You sure go all out for your party guests!
Hey, congrats on the lenrank. You've done quite well. It's a good lens too and I like it.
Not everyone can break into top 100 within category. Keep rockin'
~Newbie Shield~
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rata1234
Member
Joined: 7 Mar 2009
Posts: 4
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# Posted: 7 Mar 2009 01:16
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Hi every one,
I have made squidoo lens and they are ranked high. But I do not get much traffic. Can somebody help me how to get traffic on squidoos?
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profitgenie
Member
Joined: 2 Oct 2008
Posts: 27
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# Posted: 11 Mar 2009 15:33
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Hi Hermes
I have not gotten into squidoo yet but am getting ready to test the waters. Fantastic lense you did there. Thought it all had relevance and conveyed what you wanted to get across to the market.
How have been your conversion rates from your lense??
PG
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A8ch
Joined: 24 Jun 2005
Posts: 615
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# Posted: 11 Mar 2009 17:44 · Edited by: A8ch
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rata1234: Hi every one, I have made squidoo lens and they are ranked high. But I do not get much traffic. Can somebody help me how to get traffic on squidoos?
I write and distribute articles about different aspects of my lens content. Even though the lens is a tool, you must use other tools to prod it along, so to speak.
What's the URL to your lens?
profitgenie: How have been your conversion rates from your lense??Hi Hermes I have not gotten into squidoo yet but am getting ready to test the waters. Fantastic lense you did there. Thought it all had relevance and conveyed what you wanted to get across to the market. How have been your conversion rates from your lense?? PG
Hi PG,
Thanks for your comments.
If you plan your lens carefully and design it to do what you want it to do, you should be fine.
Traffic has increased to thye site my lens is linked to, and so have sales. Traffic from the squidoo lens itself has been picking up steam as well, but I haven't studied it that closely yet to determine conversion rate. I'm still stoking the fire in "driving-traffic" mode.
Incidentally, here are today's figures (03/11/2009) - Ranked #23 in How-To, #205 overall
Hermas
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Newbie Shield
Joined: 22 Sep 2007
Posts: 2232
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# Posted: 11 Mar 2009 23:29
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Hermas,
You're doing real well. If the traffic and interaction remains about the same for a little while longer, you'll certainly be in the top 100 overall. I can see it already :)
~Newbie Shield~
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Singapoor
Member
Joined: 6 Feb 2009
Posts: 170
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# Posted: 28 Apr 2009 00:37
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Bravo A8ch! I'd actually seen your link on other posts so had seen your lens before arriving at this thread. I was very surprised to find it's your first attempt because you've done such a great job. And it's true, better late than never.
mountainmom5: Have you seen Newbie Shields 'how to lens' ?? I use it almost every time I build a new lens - absolutely love it...
I'm just now going to venture into Squidoo land too and will most definitely go through NS's how to lens first. Will probably get started this week.
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