It helps to promote and expose your site if you have links back to your website from any web 2.0 element.

There is no NEED to create a lens (or any other web 2.0 element for the matter), it is just one good manner to drive traffic and whatnot to your site.

It's a good backlink for SEO purposes, especially because a lot of web 2.0 sites have high PR.

with just your website for a given keyword you can get one listing or at most 2 listings of your website.

web 2.0 sites have a tendency to get ranked highly because of the authoritative nature. so when you create squidoo lens or hub page in addition to your website you can get the web 2.0 properties ranked on the first page of search engines.

so it is very much possible to take up 8-10 listings of the first page of search engines - all leading back to your website = more traffic for you.

thanks guys,
so the objective is to cultivate backlinks via web 2.0.... gotcha

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Ed Dale likes to use this analogy a lot when explaining the importance of using web 2.0 properties in your marketing efforts...

Think of web 2.0 properties (squidoo, hubpages, etc...) as fishing lines bated with delicious worms (delicious to fish anyway). If you cast out ten fishing lines compared to one fishing line, you probably have a better chance of catching a fish.

If you have ten web 2.0 properties in the water we like to call the INTERNET, you will have a better chance of catching your fish (making a sale, getting a lead, etc...)

The more "fishing lines" you have in the water, the better off you are going to be.

I understand the idea of web 2.0 properties ranking in google for you. But when it comes to getting backlinks, how much difference is there between say putting up your own squidoo lens or scribd document, and just finding others' lenses/documents and leaving comments with your backlink.

Or, in other words, treating a squidoo lens or scribd document like you would posting on somebody's blog?

I'd think just posting on others' properties would be a MUCH quicker way to build backlinks...

When figuring link value, a link in the article itself is much better than in a comment or sidebar link list,. works on blogs and web2.0 sites alike. You want links coming from inside the post.

Of course another option from building them yourself is to find someone who builds their own, and offering a free article to them. Works the same as guest blog posting.

I have done this several times, some people will work with you, and some won't. Just learn to accept no and go on to someone else.