Is Klout Worth It?

Have you heard of Klout.com?  Do you know what your Klout score is?  Do you care what you Klout Score is?

Two weeks ago I had a conversation that changed the direction of my business overnight and re-focused me on something I knew was important but had stopped doing.

I was compering at The Social Media Summit for @NickyKriel in Guildford and opening the day, having fun with the fabulous audience and warming things up for the Keynote Speaker of the day @ThomasPower.

Thomas gave a warm, inspirational and emotional talk about his journey with 'Ecadamey' and how he built a huge business, lost it and then bounced back.  I loved listening to him.

After the Panel session with Q&A on Social Media and I got a chance to talk to @ThomasPower.  He complimented me on my compering skills and speaking skills and then asked me what my Klout score was.  I had not checked for a while but I knew it was around 60-ish.

He smiled and said "get it to 70 and I can get you work."

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I was intrigued, fascinated and a little bit stunned because a number generated by an American Website about my social media influence has no bearing on my ability to run workshops, educate and inspire whilst talking.

I returned home and went to meet @socially_Matt for a coffee.  Matt runs a social media business and I always ask for his advice on all matter social.  He told me that he had a similar experience this week where he had been told the reason why some of the senior people in a company he was working for had not replied to his tweets was because he was not #klout70!

That day we started a competition to see who could get to #klout70 the quickest to see the side effects, the smart strategies and the bottom line effect of this within our businesses!

The benefits so far have been:

• Fun online arguing about @Uber Cars versus Black Cabs
• A meeting with a Housing association to talk about my business @popupbusiness (Direct sales opportunity)
• I feel closer and more in touch with my friends & business connections

We are still right in the middle of the competition and I haven't found the best way to up my @Klout score yet but I will right another article to report back on that.  At the moment here are the scores on the doors:

@JaneSetter                                                            61
@Socially_Matt                                                       64
@stuartlmorris                                                        48
@AdrianBryant                                                        49
@simonjpaine                                                         56
@AlanDonegan                                                       64

If you want to find out your Klout score check here: www.klout.com

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What does Klout measure?

Here is what Klout say they measure:

"Klout measures your influence online. We measure influence primarily as the ability to drive others to action. When you produce content online, we look at how your network responds to that content. Klout takes in data from social networks and gives you an overall Score based on your online influence." 

See their blog for more details: What does Klout Measure?

Why should you bother with Klout?

I think there are some simple reasons:

1. If your @Klout score is going up then it is because you are networking well online, engaging with people and talking.
2. If you are engaging online then it will bring you opportunities and interesting people to talk to.
3. When you have a product/service to offer online a high @Klout score shows an engaged audience ready to hear about it.

I would love to hear your thoughts on Klout and where you think business/society is headed with this.  It has been a polarising subject on Twitter so I would love to know what you think. 

If you post your @Klout Score below I promise to write you a tweet and help you increase it!

Good luck with your online networking!

Tweet me at @AlanDonegan

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