Squidoo.com is a social networking site that functions as a free online platform for sharing ideas and user expertise. On Squidoo, you can style yourself as an “expert” by creating an individual web page, called a “lenses,” which gives information about your hobbies and interests, services for sale, and ideas. Web pages can be constructed by beginners who are just looking to promote their work, or by skilled developers. Squidoo.com will promote the work of their “experts” by displaying the ads and affiliates, such as book retailers like Amazon, with products tailored to the user’s content. The Squidoo lens-builders keep a 50% profit from user pages to keep or give to charity. 50% goes to the Squidoo Company, and 5% of the profit goes to the charity.

Top lenses are featured on the home page, grouped by categories which include business and travel. You can access blogs with tips for creating optimal lenses. At the bottom there is an option to create lenses with special themes, or “project” lenses. You can bookmark and rate other people’s lenses, and leave comments on other user’s lenses.

You can sign up for an account in the right hand corner of the homepage. You can receive a Squidoo newsletter to your email address, with tips on traffic and contests, and coverage of the Lens of the Day. Squidoo guides you through a clear step-by-step creating process, starting with topic selection. You then determine the aims of your lens – money-making, or getting a word out – and then proceed to design your url and page.

Successful users, with many popular lenses that have built up good traffic over a long period of time, are called “Giant Squids.” Everything from creation tips to interviews with Giant Squids to coverage of Squidoo community events are covered in the Squidoo blog.

Squidoo.com has a slightly female-biased audience. Most users tend to be college graduates.