Getting Started

Before you make your first Squidoo lens you will need:

• an email account

• a topic/keyword in mind for your first lens

As I mentioned before, a Squidoo web page is called a lens. Think of a Squidoo lens as you would think of a lens on a camera. Know how the lens of a camera can zoom in and focus tightly on ONE subject or detail of a subject?

A Squidoo lens works best when you create one like the lens of a camera.... zoom in and focus tightly on one aspect of a topic.

For example, you shouldn't make a lens that has text about dog training AND planting tomatoes. Those two topics are not related and your lens most likely will not do well.

Stick to one topic. Let's take dog training for an example. Instead of doing one lens on the broad topic of dog training, make one on how to get your dog to sit on command. Better yet, how to get your Poodle to sit on command.

See how that gets very specific? Squidoo lenses do much better when their content is very specific to what a reader is looking for.

One lens - one specific topic. Have another topic? Make another lens

When you have your first lens idea ready, keep reading and let's get your Squidoo account set up.

For this you only need an email account.

If you read the FAQ page at Squidoo.com you know that Squidoo offers half their advertising revenue as payments to their lensmasters. Now, this is NOT a lot of money (a few bucks a month per lens or so), but if you'd like to receive those monthly payments, you will also need to have your PayPal account id handy.