thank you lensmaster – squidoo reviews

Jaguarjulie must be one of the most popular lensmasters around. Her whopping 680 fans are testimony to that. The fact that she still finds time to rate and comment on lenses like my Dutch ones is amazing to me. With 380 lenses she’s also one of the most prolific lensmasters around. Reading her interview is a bit disconcerting. Her most underappreciated lenses still have 28 and 25 votes respectively. Now wouldn’t we all love to have that problem? In fact – if you were wondering if she has lenses that haven’t been voted on… I couldn’t find any. [And she had the courtesy to send the HTML code for this interview - which obviously means less work for me. I can't believe it]

With all that as an introduction, I’m honoured to be able to thank JaguarJulie.

Why are you a Squidoo lensmaster?

How/When I got started:  On March 21, 2006, I became a Squidoo lensmaster thanks to a personal invitation from BzzAgent.  I’d been a BzzAgent for quite a few years and was reasonably active there UNTIL I got that Squidoo invite.  My very first lens I AM a BzzAgent was of course a cobrand supporting BzzAgent.

Why I AM a lensmaster:  As of today, I’ve created >380 lenses on a diverse range of topics.  Squidoo has been a marvelous outlet of expression for me – I’ve had the opportunity to write about the eclectic and about those things of which I am most passionate.  It’s been many many years that my mother has asked me, “when are you going to write that book?”  You see, I’ve always wanted to be a writer; I studied English, Journalism, Creative Writing and Technical Writing in college.  Now, I’m able to compose chapter-like lenses on Squidoo which someday may lead to that book.

What is your favorite lens?

My favorite lens is of course my lensography:  Jaguar Julie Lensography as it presents in an organized and creative fashion the variety of lenses that I’ve created.  It was honored with lens of the day on March 7, 2008 — my 2nd of three such LOTDs.  Lensmasters who are honored to have their lenses featured with a LOTD can expect to receive traffic in the thousands because of the Squidoo promotions.

What lens of yours is most under appreciated?

OMG, you want just one?  I’ve got several lenses that I’ve spent hours and hours developing, but the lensranking and traffic just seem to be elusive.  I’ll cite two specific lenses which are totally different in theme and layout.  The first is Made in Hungary which was created on March 30, 2006 — just a week after I joined Squidoo!  It’s never hit the Top 100 overall and has achieved a highest rank of 295 overall. 

It’s yielded royalties for 25 months, but nothing fabulous.  For the life of the lens, it’s had about 6,000 visits.  Many, many hours of research went into finding the information for that lens to provide a comprehensive list of links for information about Hungary.

The other lens that also took quite a while to build is How to Survive a Hard Drive Crash in less than 30 days!  It was created on September 3, 2007, just a few days after my hard drive crashed while working towards attaining Giant Squid status!  The lens was created to document my efforts recovering from the hard drive crash, detailing step-by-step tips for others who might experience the same thing.  Again, this lens has never hit the Top 100 overall and has achieved a highest rank of 482 overall.  The life of the lens it’s had about 1,500 visits and received royalties for nearly twelve months.

What lens of yours is most popular?

I’ve got three food category lenses that have been quite popular:  Stuffed Cabbage [top 100: 33 days], What is Basa [top 100: 2 days], and Starbucks vs. Dunkin’ Donuts.  A how-to Squidoo lens, A Primer on How-to Squidoo with Tips from a GIANT Squid did very well until I found that my copy had been posted by an Asian website — after that I lost my Google ranking.  It seems that food lenses with good, quality recipes rank quite well on Squidoo, as well as informative, how-to Squidoo lenses.

What’s one thing you see lensmasters doing that doesn’t work – and why doesn’t it?

Hmmm, again one thing?  Well, I think I would not be alone if I were to say that non-quality lenses do not benefit a lensmaster.  When a lensmaster decides to create a lens, pick a subject that matters and create a quality lens around that subject — don’t be shooting to create a LOT of lenses just to have a LOT of lenses!  It should be about quality rather than about quantity. 

What’s your most important Squidoo promotion method?

Well, to promote my lenses, I’ve tried the various social media platforms that are available directly from our Squidoo lenses.  But, as many lensmasters have probably found out, that can be a tricky method of promotion.  Using the various social media platforms available means becoming acquainted with EACH platform first — as I believe you have written about in a lens.  The best type of promotion for me is a blend of those platforms along with using my blog(s) and website(s). At the moment, I am trying to make more time in my daily schedule to get BACK to blogging to make meaningful blog posts.

Which lensmaster(s) have helped you most?

Many lensmasters have been kind along the way, offering encouragement and taking time out to contact me directly in addition to signing my guestbook.  Honestly, to name just a few, I’d be so afraid that I left someone out!  I’d like to say a warm and special thank you to those special lensmasters + squid angels + giant squids who have taken time to contact me, bless one of my lenses, leave a comment in my guestbook, ask me a question, offer encouragement, or just say HI … Thank you!