Five Kinds of Lenses Worth Building
As the public beta progresses (yes, it’s really a beta, with bugs and everything… please be patient) people are exploring what a lens can do.
A few thoughts (where “I” means the surfer, not me):
1. biographical lenses. The world needs at least one lens on every important thinker. A lens that highlights blog posts, books, movies, services, bio, etc. When I want to know about Malcolm Gladwell or Tom Peters or Naomi Klein, it would be great if there were a lens to get me started.
2. corporate lenses. Not only does every company worthy of a website need a lens to help people discover what they offer, but just about every product can use one as well. 20 uses for baking soda! The direct dial phone number of that hotel in Crested Butte…
3. consumer lenses. I need a lens on which digital camera to buy. Actually, a few lenses, increasingly focused, very specific and quite opinionated.
4. revenue lenses. This is a subset of #3. If everyone is going to buy the next Harry Potter DVD, they might as well buy it through you and your lens, right? Give me enough value and enough meaning and I’ll show up. Make it easy for me to buy with just a click and I’ll buy right here.
5. lenses of lenses. I know we’re getting pretty meta here, but with more than 6,000 lenses, I want to see lenses about the best lenses!
I’m going to stop at five because that’s what the headline says, but my hunch is that I’m missing another 12.