Who are you Writing Your Lenses For?

A discussion at the Giant Squid Summer Camp prompted me to address  this this.

The Giants were discussing different uses for the Guestbook Module and it was  mentioned that lensmasters are accustomed to seeing the Guestbook Module placed at the end of a lens and that most Squidoo lensmasters would actually STOP reading a lens as soon as they arrive at a Guestbook Module.

That might  be  true, and it is definitely something that you need to keep in mind when you are  writing lenses specifically for the Squidoo.com community but if you are planning to have your lenses read by the vast online population of people who have never created a lens, you need to realize that they “do not” have any preconceived notions about what a lens should look like, or where a Guestbook Module should appear.   They are visiting your lens because of the unique, interesting, satisfying, and in this social-media-crazed-society, maybe even the interactive quality of  your content.

As a Squidoo lensmaster, I always like to find a Guestbook module at the end of a lens but that doesn’t mean you can’t use one in the middle, like  Bellingham WA, Restaurant Critic or even as the very first module, on your lens, like on  Amish Recipes.

You just need to decide who you’re really writing your lens for, and then design it accordingly.