After having re-read HQ's post regarding "amazing personal emotional content" lenses, I wonder if my contribution will be accepted on Squidoo any longer. I know for a fact that my lenses that really make me money are those that provide my readers with a bunch of curated content from online stores, along with their description and not the lenses that are "personal" or "emotional" such as my Family Holidays in Broadstairs or Tossa de Mar or my Teddy Bear lenses, for example.
As a Giant contestant, I experienced that type of lenses: personal stories (not too personal though) and can state that they get almost no traffic nor do they make any sales.
In reality, that kind of lenses is pretty useless in terms of money and if all we want is create non making money pages on the Internet, we'd rather go to Blogger which allows us to create content blogs without the troubles we face creating lenses on Squidoo. In addition, Blogger blogs get more traffic than other individual useless pages on the Web and more particularly to those "emotional, personal, amazing" lenses.
To be honest, I am not the type of person who would share their personal details, life or whatever. Nor do I share my pictures unless they're indispensable to illustrate my topic. I don't want the world to know me better than what I agree to share (next to nothing) and do not want pictures or my house or car or children publicly displayed.
When making a lens about products I like, I generally get straight to the poind as it is what my potential buyers are looking for. I never unveil my private life, unless it is an absolute need. The same applies when I look for something I want to buy : I don't want to hear anything regarding your private life. All I want is a description of the product, its size, features, benefits, disadvantages, tech stuff if needed, how will it fits in the house, the closet or any place it should be put, how it looks like in reality, are colors exactly the same as those listed by the manufacturer ? Etc.
In case I land on a page or lens that's close to those HQ wants us to create nowadays, then I don't read anything: I now that the page isn't what I look for from the very first paragraph and more likely hit the "close window" button. I'll then go to another site that will provide me with the needed information.
Let's take the 3 lenses I mentioned above as examples. All these lenses are filled with personal content regarding personal travels and personal choices and stories. I won't say that I entirely unveil my private life but all in all these are travels I did and things I bought for my son. While people interested in reading other people's life, these pages won't attract buyers since they are accounts of things I did and collect. Out of these lenses I think that, in 4 years I made three sales. Three sales ! Can you believe that ! Moreover, these lenses are ranked so low that I seriously wonder if search engines know that they do exist.
Not long ago, I considered the option to move these lenses to my own sites and turn them into something far more commercial than they are now. The two travel lenses could become suggestions for holiday resorts in Europe and the third one could become a fantastic Christmas gift idea.
These are the only ways those lenses could make me some money : removing the personal stories will attract buyers and not surfers.
I'm not sure that Squidoo can keep making money the way it did in the past if they oblige us to follow that new way of lensmaking.
People who buy from our lenses are looking for pages that talk about them, their needs, what they can expect, what they have to face when buying the featured product, not what I think, what I live, my problems or elses : they don't mind my life, they're only interested in the product and the way it will help them. When I write a lens, I write for my reader, not for HQ, not for myself... Moreover, I am NOT a self-licking lollipop!
Also, I highly dislike that someone else speaks in my name : I know what I want to read, I know what I want to find, I know what I have an interest in. I'm also convinced that a lot of web browsers think alike.
My conclusion: Squidoo has been managed by a great marketing team in the past. However, time has come for the site to be taken over by a team that looks like desperate housewives. At least it is the way the home page looks, the last posts by HQ look and the smell of Squidoo's future.
My conclusion: Squidoo has been managed by a great marketing team in the past. However, time has come for the site to be taken over by a team that looks like desperate housewives. At least it is the way the home page looks, the last posts by HQ look and the smell of Squidoo's future.
Luckily for them there are many great lensmasters out there - especially in the art section - for them to provide readers with actual "personal, useful" content.
But the most part of the site is going to go to "my next door public garden" and craft stuff.
Posted by Squidoo Angel Prosperity66
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