7 Tips on Getting a High Squidoo Rank

Having a high rank at Squidoo won't likely influence your traffic much, but it does lend your lens an air of authority that you might not otherwise have. While I'm not an expert, I have been using Squidoo for more than a year, and have learned quite a bit by reading up on it and experimenting.

1. Garner links and traffic.
This is rather obvious since having quality links and a lot of traffic will raise your rankings anywhere. But it is necessary to point it out as many people think getting their lens ranked well in search engines is enough. It's not. A good search engine ranking will help pump traffic your way, but it's not enough to push your lens above similar lenses by others. And if you want to attract visitors through Squidoo's search engine, a high rank is a must.

2. Build a thorough lens.
Many lens masters put up one or two modules and let their lens fly. The problem with this is that Squidoo doesn't see those lenses as being worthwhile no matter how much information is provided. Try splitting your information into at least 3 text or link modules and include one or two shopping modules as well as an RSS feed or other such self updating module. This gives your lens the appearance of being well rounded and useful, even if it isn't. Though, of course, the more useful you make it, the better your chances of link backs and repeat viewers.

3. Ask an Angel.
Squidoo has a group of lens masters who accept requests to rate lenses. While they don't require their members to rate every request that comes in, even one or two ratings will help your rank rise (remember, you can't get a rating of less than zero, and that's what you start with).

4. Ask your friends.
If you have a blog, post a link and ask your readers to take a look and rate it if they like it. This is killing two birds as you're gaining at least one link (your own) and hopefully a few ratings from fellow lens masters. Every time someone rates one of my blogs, the rank shoots up for several days.

5. Sell something.
Obviously, you can't make people buy from you. But if you know someone who's about to make a purchase from, say, Amazon, you can ask them to access Amazon via your Amazon module on your Squidoo lens. Whenever someone makes a purchase from one of my lenses, the rank shoots straight up. It only lasts for a few days, but that lens does tend to float a bit higher ever after. I've heard of people making purchases themselves through their own lenses, but I'd check Amazon's and Squidoo's Terms Of Service before doing that. If it violates TOS, it's not worth taking the chance.

6. Update constantly.
If you have the time and inclination, you can keep your content "fresh" by updating on a daily basis. This is not an easy way to attain and maintain high rank, but it can work. Particularly if you add content often rather than simply change it out. Even minor changes, such as a word or sentence, can help your rankings.

7. Don't update constantly.
In the beginning, I thought that I had to update on a nearly daily basis just to maintain a decent rank. And then I got busy. What I noticed was that after a week or so, my rank dropped dramatically. But, after another week or so, my rank came back to almost as high as it was when I was constantly updating. And it stayed there. I have lenses that I haven't updated in almost 2 months, but their rank is more or less where it was just after updating. Also, my rank usually tanks for a day or so after an update before it rises again. Adding a self updating RSS feed module can help keep content fresh while not penalizing your lens during the update period.

Do you have any tips to add?