Archive for September, 2008

Everyone knows that Squidoo is one of the most popular web 2.0 social networking sites on the Internet today. There are lenses on virtually every single topic you can think of, and hundreds of thousands of lenses to choose from if you need solid information about a particular niche.

In addition to being one of the easiest ways for an Internet marketer to establish their authority on a subject, Squidoo is also one of the most powerful tools for SEO and high rankings. But many people still have trouble understanding just how to use Squidoo to their best advantage, so they go out on the search for more information on how to make the most of this amazing tool.

Even though there are now a number of different e-books available on how to use Squidoo, the best Squidoo e-book to read is still the first one that was ever published (and updated regularly): Social Networking on Squidoo, by author, internet marketer and Squidoo Queen, Tiffany Dow - moi. I was the first author to ever publish a book on using Squidoo.

Unlike other Squidoo e-books which simply tell you (in a nutshell) that you should set up lenses as fast as you can and start linking for SEO purposes, Social Networking on Squidoo actually takes you by the hand and walks you through the entire Squidoo experience. Inside Social Networking on Squidoo, you’ll learn:

* How to set up your account, including how to choose pen names if you’re planning on working with more than one niche

* How to plan out your lens strategy before you ever start to create a single lens

* How to do your keyword research in order to make sure you’re going to get high rankings for your lenses in both Squidoo and the search engines

* How to keep yourself focused on a single niche - and on a specific audience within that niche - to build even bigger profits

* How to use Squidoo to create your very own Internet empire

This is just the basics of what all goes into in my e-book. And considering I’ve created hundreds of lenses and achieved the status of Giant Squid, you can rest assured that this author absolutely knows what she’s talking about!

In addition to all of the in-depth information on using Squidoo that you’re going to get inside the Social Networking on Squidoo guide, I also offer free lifetime updates on the book. This means that each time a newer version is released, previous buyers are automatically eligible to receive these updates at no extra charge.

Considering the fact that the future of Internet marketing is in web 2.0 social sites like Squidoo, you really can’t afford NOT to get the best Squidoo e-book on the market today.

Squidoo marketing requires lens masters to recognize certain opportunities that will help them increase profits to their direct and affiliate links. Many lens masters mistakenly believe they are capitalizing on Squidoo marketing opportunities, but later find out that they’ve missed a few things. There are five major Squidoo marketing mistakes that you should avoid at all costs if you want your lens crafting to be successful.

First, you have to use your tags properly with your Squidoo marketing efforts. It all begins when you choose the URL for your lens. You want to make sure that your tag, or prime keyword, is in the URL name. Check to ensure that you’ve spelled your tags properly, because you won’t be able to change the URL at a later date.

As you create your lens based around Squidoo marketing opportunities, you want to ensure that your keywords, or tags, are listed in every title and subtitle within the lens. This includes poll modules, guestbook modules, and every other module on your lens. The content that you put on your lens needs to have your keywords woven throughout. Don’t engage in keyword stuffing if you want your Squidoo marketing efforts to unfold nicely.

When Squidoo was first launched, it was important to add relevant keywords to your tag list. However, beginning January 1, 2008, Squidoo implemented nofollow codes to their tag pages. This means that when you add the available 40 tags to your lenses, it only serves to help with the inner Squidoo searches, not search engines such as Google.

The second Squidoo marketing mistake that you need to avoid is in not utilizing your hyperlinking opportunities. Some people simply put banner ads at the bottom of their text modules. Don’t forget other areas where you can hyperlink text that goes to your websites or points to your affiliate links, such as your My Bio section.

You can also use basic HTML code to create hyperlinks in your text modules, including your introduction module. Another little-known place that you can use a hyperlink is in the description section of money modules such as Amazon and eBay.

If you use a poll module, then you have unlimited linking opportunities. For example, you can ask a question such as, “What is the best e-book on affiliate marketing?” Then, each of your poll response options can be hyperlinked to a particular e-book using your affiliate link. Both before and after the visitor takes the poll, they will be able to click through on the link. If they choose one option, and then see that the majority of visitors chose a different option, they may be influenced to go and buy that product.

The third Squidoo marketing mistake that you want to avoid is in not joining groups on Squidoo. This is a social networking site, and as such, that means that you need to participate in the community. But joining groups serves a dual purpose.

While tag pages have a nofollow code implemented on them, group pages do not. They earn their own individual PageRank on Google, just as your lenses do. It’s better to start your own group and encourage people to join, but it’s also beneficial to expose your lens links on existing group pages.

Not promoting traffic to your lens is the fourth Squidoo marketing mistake everyone should avoid. Many people believe that once they create their lens, adding content and images, their work is done. But this isn’t true.

It’s your responsibility to send targeted traffic to your lens and help it build a reputation in the search engines. You can do this by using social bookmarking sites such as StumbleUpon, e-mail your list about it, write an article and submit it to a directory with your lens link in your resource section, and blog about it to help it get picked up and entered into the Google spider rotation.

Lastly, you want to avoid the Squidoo marketing mistake of not updating your lens regularly. You don’t have to log in daily to make major changes to your Squidoo lens content. What you need to do is log in every once in awhile and freshen up the content — even if it’s in a minor manner.

One good way to do this is to check your traffic stats for the lens and see how people are finding your lens. You may discover that they’re entering questions into Google and landing on your lens, but it’s a question that you haven’t yet answered in your lens content. This provides you the perfect Squidoo marketing opportunity to provide a solution to their problems.

If you can steer clear of these five Squidoo marketing mistakes, your lens crafting will be more successful. Be sure to test and tweak your lens content so that it performs to the best of its ability. Take time to make sure that your hyperlinks are all working. Polish your lens and your visitors will appreciate your expertise and authority — which is boosted by the clean layout Squidoo lenses have to offer.

If you would rather utilize expert lens masters to build your lens instead of having to navigate the rules yourself, you can visit http://www.BuildMyLens.com and but a single or 4-pack lens package. Tiffany Dow and Lewis Smile, two lens masters who have been awarded Giant Squid status, have built hundreds of lenses for Internet marketers. You get original content by a top ghostwriter paired with images, as well as bookmarking to help your traffic get a jumpstart. You also get a lens master cheat sheet to help you maintain your professionally-created lens from that point on.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Tiffany_Dow

http://EzineArticles.com/?Squidoo-Marketing-Mistakes-You-Should-Avoid&id=1524853

I’m going to toot my own horn here.

When it comes to creating Squidoo lenses that get results, there’s one woman that smart Internet marketers turn to - the real “Squidoo Queen” - moi - Tiffany Dow!

I have single-handedly created hundreds of Squidoo lenses for dozens of the world’s biggest names in Internet marketing, as well as for myself. I’m also one of a select group who achieved the much coveted status of Giant Squid (we get perks and insider tips as well as beta experimenting no one else gets).

Some savvy marketer stole the term Squidoo Queen shortly after others began using that nickname to describe me when I wrote the first marketing eBook on Squidoo - Social Networking on Squidoo. If Id’ have known Squidoo would allow their brand name in the URL, I would have grabbed it, but I was advised against it thanks to stingy MySpace’s rules with their brand.

So just who is Tiffany Dow? In a nutshell, I’m a ghostwriter turned Internet marketer. To look at where I am today, you’d never know that I got my start working as a service provider for one of the leading freelance sites on the Internet, quickly building a reputation for myself among the top Internet marketing “gurus” after Jimmy Brown taught me what IM was all about.

As my reputation grew, this Squidoo Queen found herself increasingly drawn by the appeal of Internet marketing, and decided to put my skills as a writer to work making money for myself. Discovering Squidoo was the turning point for my journey In internet marketing, and I quickly discovered secrets which I could share with other marketers.

I began offering lens creation services to others. The sheer number of top quality lenses Lewis (let’s call him the Squidoo King) and I have produced, our ability to gain top rankings within the Squidoo system (both have had lens of the day, for example), and our attention to the finer details often overlooked that rake in loads of cash month after month from Squidoo have definitely earned me the title Squidoo Queen.

In Social Networking on Squidoo, this Squidoo Queen takes you by the hand and walks you through the entire process of building profitable lenses - in fact, many of my customers have reported attaining top five rankings in Google after following the steps I’ve outlined in my book.

So what does the Squidoo Queen find herself doing these days? Well, in addition to the myriad of eBooks I have available, which bring in a consistent hands-free income, and my PLR MiniMart, which offers top notch PLR content to niche marketers at an affordable price, I’ve teamed up with Lewis Smile to create the BuildMyKnol.com website, in conjunction with the BuildMyLens brand. We offer custom knol and lens creation to Internet marketers around the world.

Even with so much of my income hands-free these days, this Squidoo Queen finds herself busier than ever building custom Squidoo lenses and Google Knols for hundreds of satisfied customers to date!