Thank you for visiting!  For the latest posts and our new site design please visit www.whattheklout.com (we switched hosting platforms).

Best,

@gknutson and @abelmind

Post by @gknutson and @abelmind

Newt and Mitt may be in the same party but are very different candidates to say the least.  We set out to find out what each are saying online using Klout topics.  And with Santorum’s recent wins in some smaller states, we gave him a little love as well, but just a little. 

[Click to Enlarge] 

Happy voting!

@gknutson and @abelmind

Post by @abelmind and @gknutson

Monday, 2/13, Kred announced on their corporate blog their alternative to Klout’s +K, which is a way for users to reward influence outside of the algorithm.  While Klout doesn’t own the idea of “+” when it comes to the digital space (think Google’s +1) it definitely feels like they are getting ripped off.  Sound familiar?  It reminds us of this scene from American film classic Coming to America starring Eddie Murphy.  In the scene fast food restaurateur Mr. McDowell explains how his “Big Mick” sandwich is completely different than McDonalds’ “Big Mac” because his doesn’t have sesame seeds on the bun.  

NOTE: the video quality is crappy (or should I say Krappy?) so turn your volume up:

What is Kred’s tactic for stealing Klout users on Valentine’s Day?  For the rest of the month Kred will give one extra +Kred point to anyone who receives a +K within Klout AND has that tweeted by the giver.  Damn, that was a mouthful.  Their hope is (I think) that Kred users will give +Kred to someone on Kred, then do the same on Klout, then tweet it, then tell that person that they gave them a +Kred and +K and that because they tweeted about it the person actually has two +Kred points and only one +K, which makes that person switch to using Kred over Klout.  It couldn’t get any simpler than that.

What is Klout’s Valentine’s Day marketing campaign?  They have changed the name of +K to +Kiss for the day:  

Our advice to marketers on Valentine’s Day (or any other day for that matter) -- Keep it simple stupid.

Regards,

@abelmind and @gknutson

Post by @gknutson

I know what you’re thinking…and that’s not what I meant.  Today I received my first PeerPerk in the mail.  A couple free samples (one full size) of high end chocolate from British retailer Abe’s Market who are looking to move into the US market. 

Here’s a tip for non-US marketers looking to grow in the US market – “Montezuma” has a double meaning here in the states.  Not only does it refer to the Aztec Emperor, but something much, much less desirable as well. 

In the future I’d refrain from using the words “You’ve been Montezuma’d!” at all, and especially not pairing them with a chocolate bar that happens to be called “Jungle Fever”. 

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have some chocolate to eat.

@gknutson

Post by @gknutson

Klout Score in My address? The world must be coming to an end. If you need me I'll be huddled in the fetal position in my basement. Just kidding, I don’t have a basement.

In all seriousness, thanks to my coworkers for the awesome card with even more awesome envelope (Blake, Rick “T-town” Buie, Jim “100% open rate” Martel, Leanne, Jessica, Kristi, Lauren, Chris (both of them), Becky, Erin, Lindsey and Matt).  Hopefully the Facebook wishes will help boost my score a couple points before my half birthday. 

 See you guys tomorrow!

@gknutson

The viral whiteboard "social media explained" was missing Klout. Do you know how to explain social media? If you like donuts it should be easy.

Post by @abelmind

According to we dont save lives and nfl.com the Giants have already one the Superbowl. Short on confidence? I don't think so. The site has been created and the buttons pushed. Woops? Well, as we predicted almost to a T that the 2011 world series would be close between the St. Louis Cardinals and Texas Rangers and go to a game 7. We are here again to predict the #SUPERBOWL. The Rangers and Cardinals had the SAME EXACT Klout score (86) with similar online influence. But neither team could fool the Klout algorithm and its accuracy. We have no doubt, we will be correct again. Manning still shadowed by his brothers greatness, proves he has the mental capacity of Newt Gingrich on the field, but the Patriots defense is better then a pig farmers whip (what?).... So who will win? Our prediction...

Patriots 27 Giants 38

Post by @gknutson

I would have expected more.  Not because he’s the president, but because such a huge deal was made about the wildly successful use of social media during his first run for president.  “He” is Barrack Obama for those of you who missed it in the title.

Here’s the story.  Last week I received an auto-generated email from a friend saying they had started their own grass roots fundraising page.   

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The 2012 campaign is just getting started, but to build the kind of grassroots organization we'll need to win, we have to get involved now.

That's why I started my own grassroots fundraising page.

I want my page to show that political power can come from organizing at the grassroots level all over the country, not just powerful interests in Washington.

Together we can protect the progress we've made, and build on that progress over the next four years.

Will you support the President by making a donation of $5 or more to my page today?

Thanks

https://my.barackobama.com/page/outreach/view/2012/TeamWilson

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

So what’s the fail?

1)      The homepage only has a Facebook “Like” button.  Where’s the Twitter, LinkedIn and other social network integration?

2)      After donating (and yes, I donated…twice just to double check that I wasn’t missing anything) the site does offer the chance to “connect” with facebook to make login easier.  They also give you the ability to sign up for futre tex messaging, but again, there are no opportunities to tweet or share to Facebook, etc. that I had donated. 

3)      Aside from giving them my phone number, the only other option is to create my OWN “grassroots fundraising” campaign.  That’s a lot of work when my friend has already created one and we likely roll in a lot of the same circles.  Shouldn’t there be an easier way for me to share my friend’s page? 

Am I just being lazy?

Oh, by the way the “Wilson” from “Team Wilson” is this cute cuddly puppy.  Doesn’t that make you want to donate today?

Thanks,

@gknutson

Post by @abelmind

Klout recently launched its newest Klout Perk. approx. $50 worth of travel vouchers from airbnb. We might not deserve a holiday, but Man do we wish we were eligible! The perk targets scores over 40 and you must live in the UK. Well at least that is what we thougt. 4 people in Seattle recieved an email telling them to claim their first UK perk.... But we weren't eligible. After visiting the Klout blog we noticed the targeting problems were worst then we thought. 

Hundreds of users in the UK, who had a Klour score over 40, who were eligible to receive the Airbnb Perk, were told "Sorry you're not eligible." This caused an influx of comments on the Klout blog. This is yet another frustrating Klout bug/glitch. However. Klout has risen to the occasion, by helping users who are having trouble claiming the perk. If you live in the UK and are eligible. Email help@klout.com. If you are like the rest of us and got the perk without being eligible... they were teasing you and you'll just have to wait for your Holiday. Sorry.

Sincerely,

@abelmind

Post by @gknutson

I'm really surprised more hasn't been written about Wahooly, the startup offering regular joe's like me equity in other startups (over 200 in 2012) by helping to promote said startups using their online influence.  In a sense giving people shares in a company for tweeting/blogging/facebooking about it.  Pretty cool concept.  To get its initial members back in November Wahooly came to Klout and did a "Perk". 

Since I'm a Kloutaholic I signed up.  Wahooly chatter been pretty nonexistent since then but today I recieved an email from Wahooly with some details on the program inclding some exciting news that it goes live Tuesday, January 31. 

Here's the email with more:

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hello!

We're almost ready for lauch — as in days, not weeks.  Our official launch date is set as January 31st.  This is just a quick email to say thank you for your patience and to get you up to speed.

What have we been up to?

In the four months since Wahooly began, we’ve been working to amass a group of over 28,000 influential users. We've also been sorting through over 240 applications and finalizing discussions with some very innovative start-ups, which you'll be meeting soon. These are some awesome companies that are excited about what we're capable of and willing to make us all a part of their success.

What can you expect on launch day?

What you’re about to experience is something that’s never been done before. Together, we’re breaking new ground and proving how social influence can impact business growth. We’re very excited for what lies ahead.

On launch day, you’ll be presented with a few initial start-ups to choose from. You’ll be able to join the companies that interest you and begin the Wahooly experience. In the days that follow, we will be introducing you to even more start-ups, for a total of 200 throughout the year.

If you’re not ready to join any start-ups, you’ll be able to explore the system and get comfortable with its features.

What can you do right now?

Hundreds of users have already begun to network with each other through a Facebook group called Wahooligans. We are on the page quite a bit, observing discussions, answering questions and posting news.

Join the Wahooligans group

Also, please connect with us directly on the pages below.

Twitter     Facebook    Google+

Here’s to exciting year ahead.

See you soon,
Team Wahooly

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I'll post again next week with an update on how launch goes.

Best,

@gknutson

Post by @gknutson

I received an email today from Klout competitor PeerIndex.  The first I’ve received since singing up for their service months ago. BUT, it was a fun one to get, because I was my first taste of their new PeerPerks program.  Gee, I wonder where they got the name from?  Same place Kred got the first letter of their name from?  Naw, can’t be. 

Caveat: I called the program new its been around for months, this is just the first I've been personally been exposed to it. 

Anyhow, thanks to the email below in 5 days I’ll be the proud owner of two bars of chocolate courtesty of PeerIndex and Abe’s Market.  I don’t know what Abe’s Market is but I thank them!  I’ll post again when the chocolate bars arrive to show you the packaging. 

Looking at the PeerIndex site I can find one other current Perk.  See below for details.  It will be interesting to see how many more pop up in the near future.  More to come on that.

So, are you signing up for PeerIndex now?

Regards,

@gknutson

Post by @gknutson

It aint easy to get elected to office.  I ran for school treasurer in 8^th grade.  Failed.  Years later in college I ran for President of my Fraternity.  Failed again.   Running for President of the United States is a bit tougher I imagine.  It takes more than a best friend from third period hanging up posters in the hallway or a guarantee of free beers for all fratters.  Making a run at the highest office in the land takes a heck of a lot more that – starting with the right campaign manager. 

When I was 11 mother was a campaign manager for the winning candidate during “Washington's closest legislative race in history”.  Go mom!  I don’t remember a ton of specifics from that campaign but I do recall it was a ton of work.  Everything from getting interviews, organizing campaign rallies and most importantly fundraising were all on her shoulders.  Remembering those days made me wonder how things must be different for campaign managers today.  In some ways using social media could make all of the above easier, but on the other hand these tools are available to them all so it’s really about who uses it best, right?  

Being that I co-author a blog about Klout I figured I’d checking the online influence of some of today’s most important campaign managers – those of the four remaining republican candidates was a great place to start. 

My assumption going into this exercise was that these four dudes would be super active on Twitter with a bunch of followers but that wasn’t the case.  To give these guys some credit my guess is they are too busy focusing on managing their candidates social media accounts rather than their own…still no excuse.

Before getting to the scores here a few nuggets --  Newt’s manager hasn’t tweeted in 14 days.  Santorum’s has the highest Klout score his latest tweet was about how much coffee he’s had this morning.  Ron Paul’s guy hasn’t tweeted in 10 months and finally Mitt Romney’s campaign manager has never tweeted ever (at least not as himself).

Michael Biundo, Klout Score 57 (Rick Santourm)

1,672 Twitter followers

1,882 Facebook friends

Last Tweet:

Michael Krull, Klout Score 48 (Newt Gingrich)

469 Twitter followers

 Registered Klout.com user!

Last tweet:

Jesse Benton, Klout Score 25 (Ron Paul)

1,795 Twitter followers

Last tweet:

Matt Rhoades, Klout Score N/A (Mitt Romney)

Not on Twitter

Tidbit: Known as being low profile

What he looks like in deep thought:

Whoever wins, my money says we see more online activity and a rising Klout score from that person as November 2012 nears.  Care to guess what President Obama’s Campaign Manager’s Klout score is? 71.

Happy primaries,

@gknutson

Post by @gknutson

The idea behind Klout Perks is simple.  Klout hooks up marketers with people who are not only have online influence in certain topics but that have a proven track record of creating action amongst their networks.  In this scenario, the influencers are rewarded. 

The other day while driving hours and hours along I-5 to watch my wife run another half marathon (she’s a maniac and does this almost every weekend) I saw quite a few people pulled over for speeding.   As with just about everything these days I tried to find a Klout application to the situation. 

Here’s what I came up with.  It’s probably crazy, but I really wouldn’t be surprised if decades from now something like this actually becomes a reality. 

Think of all the petty crimes that people either get a warning for or end up going to court only to get the ticket/fee reduced or completely removed.  Think parking tickets, minor speeding infractions, littering, j-walking, etc.  In these situations there is either no punishment at all or the time/effort spent by the government is far more than the monetary amount collected in the fine. 

So here’s the rub - What if the officer who pulls over the minor traffic violator or the judge overseeing the case had the ability to either replace or supplement the punitive arrangement with an apology or teaching moment that is then required to be “broadcast” what they've hopefully learned on one or more social media channels.  Or if a kid who is caught smoking at school instead of getting suspended for a week has to not only take a quick little course on the dangers of smoking but after post to his/her Facebook page that they took said course.  Both of these examples would leverage the individuals influence to teach their network about the dangers of whatever the original offence was, thus hopefully lessoning similar incidents within their network in the future. 

Crazy and unrealistic?  Probably.  Let me know your thoughts.

@gknutson

Post by @gknutson

First off let me say this -- Trying to raise one’s Klout score just for the sake of having a higher score is silly.  Klout is a useful tool to help people understand their influence and for marketers to connect with influencers.  It’s not a game.  (Sorry if that sounded straight out of an after school special)

BUT, I promised you a tip so I’m going to give it to you. 

If one thing in life is true it’s that American’s love their cars.  They also believe everyone other than themselves is a terrible driver.  Another known fact is that using the word “hipster” makes people (hipsters I imagine) very, very angry. 

Put those together and you’ve got a recipe for success.  I’ll explain, but first watch this video:

You may have seen on the news the unusually massive amounts of snow Seattle, WA has received the past few days.  Massive for Seattle at least.  Anyhow, I happen to live in Seattle and two days ago ventured out into the winter wonderland and shot that video and immediately uploaded it to YouTube and posted it on Facebook for fun.  In less than 36 hours the video has received nearly 10,000 views and some pretty sweet comments.   Here are a few of my favs:

“Fact is Seattle is over run with very annoying SUV driven by people that don't know how”

“I would have run down as many as possible, Seattle is overpopulated with annoying hipsters.”

“Hipsters are known to gather in large crowds, and boo any vehicle that isn't a bicycle. Capital Hill is notorious for hipsters too... 1 + 1 = 2”

“Anyone else hate getting called a hipster because of where you happen to be standing?”

10,000 views isn’t exactly viral, and it might not boost my Klout score too much, however I do think there is a real lesson to be learned here about digital content.  Not only was the video funny (in my opinion), but more importantly it was timely.  This Seattle snow storm were currently enduring is big news and therefore easy to capitalize on, not just for fools like me with a video camera, but marketers as well. 

What’s the next version of our little Seattle storm?  How will I/we use it to engage customers and start conversations online?  Who knows...if you have any ideas give me a ring: 281-330-8004

 @gknutson

Post by @gknutson

I don’t know jack about algorithms, I leave that to @abelmind.  But I do know who I rely on for my news and information, and today Klout asked me (and you for that matter) for my opinion to help make their algorithm more accurate. 

Remember the site hotornot.com?  Unfortunately I do…  Back in college my fraternity brothers and I spent way too many hours…

The Social Network had a similar scene where Zuckerberg’s character and his roommates were rating different co-eds head to head based solely on looks. 

This is like that however Klout-style and based on influence, which is more civil I think. 

It goes something like this -- Klout serves up a total of 10 head to head comparisons asking which you find more influential.  There is also the choice of “neither”.  I don’t think hot or not gave that choice, what a rip off!  What if they aren’t my type?

Here’s an example of one of the choices – Two women – Erin Boyer and Liz York.  Channeling my hotornot.com days I chose Erin based on looks alone.  Did you see her hairdo? HOT!  Just kidding, Erin is actually a man and coworker of mine, but he’s from Wasilla, Alaska, home of Sarah Palin so he’s just a little bit awkward and thinks the rat tail twitter pic is funny.  I guess it’s working for him, since he somehow has a girlfriend. 

Anyhow, back to business.  After going through the ten side by side comparisons I received the following message: 

Will it help?  Time will tell.  But more importantly, will Erin Boyer ever get a real haircut?

Best,

@gknutson

Post by @gknutson

The latest Klout Perk gets me really excited, even though I’m not eligible.  The Seattle Convention & Visitors Bureau is giving 60 (30 people plus a guest) FREE trips to online influencers. 

Unfortunately for me and @abelmind we already live in Seattle so we’re not eligible.  Who is? Influencers with scores of 55+ that live in Vancouver, Portland and San Francisco and influential in one of these topics --  travel, food, arts and culture or wine.  Perk recipients get $500 bucks cold hard cash some free booze at some of our wonderful world-class wineries along free entrance to a museum I’ve never heard of (I’m not that cultured).

Since I can’t receive this perk I’d still like to participate by giving some recommendation to those who can.  Having lived here in the beautiful Pacific Northwest for the past 31 years it’s one thing I’m actually qualified to do. 

Eat at the Space Needle.  Don’t just ride to the top and take pictures.  While the food used to be sub-par and seriously overpriced its now quite good.  Really good in fact.  And only slightly overpriced.  But the best view in the city easily makes up for the coin you’ll need to fork over for the best rotating dining experience in the world.  Chef Jeff Maxfield has really turned that place around.  I recommend the short ribs.  Yum.  Let them know you’re coming by hitting them up with a tweet [@space_needle].

You’ve only got two nights, otherwise I’d recommend visiting the Olympic National Park, my childhood back yard.  Instead, get a taste of that Twilight feeling without leaving downtown and check out the REI flagship store. Not only do they have every outdoor equipment a person could ever need, they’ve got a fake forest out front for testing hiking boots, bikes and providing good cover for teens to make out. 

And it wouldn’t be a trip to Seattle without a visit to Pike Place Market.  Not to see the fish throwers, buy a cup of coffee from the original Starbucks store or to buy flowers for your sweetie, but to say that you personally visited the venue where yours truly married the love of his life @arielledora. Thanks again to @redboxpics for capturing that day perfectly. 

Oh, and hit me up when you get here, I love to play tour guide.

Best,

@gknutson

Post by @gknutson

Today when I logged into Klout.com I received the following pop up:

This is likely in response to some angry mother‘s feedback claiming Klout was “profiling” children by giving them Klout scores.  

The real tragedy here is that now even with his perfect score of 100 Justin Bieber is not eligible for Klout Perks.  Now he’ll just have to wait until March 1st (his 18th birthday) to get some freebies.  Shoot, maybe Demi Moore will hire Klout to hook her up with the Biebs now that she’s back on the market…do I smell the first celebrity Klout Perk? 

Thanks,

@gknutson

Post by @gknutson

A few minutes ago my wife walked in the door with the mail. We are now the proud owners of an iPhone and Windows Phone 7 with CLEAN screens. No, we didn't get free phones...I wish. CBS sent me a screen wipe promoting its new show "Person of Interest".

The Klout Perk came packaged in a greeting card sized white envelope with extra-large Klout Perks sticker on sealing it in the back.

The screen wipe packaging states "Erase your identity. Clean the screen". I assume this has something to do with the show, but I don’t watch it. But who knows, maybe next time I'm flipping through the channels and see that it's on I'll tune in.

Regards,

@gknutson

Post by @gknutson

Back on October 30th we showcased starting NFL quarterbacks by listing their number of Twitter followers and Klout scores. Today amidst the excitement of the second round of the NFL playoffs we've revisited that list to see what has changed if anything. 

What's the big news? While Michael Vick has become the first NFL QB with over 1 million followers on Twitter, the infamous Tim Tebow is now killing him in Klout. Back in October they both ranked the same in online influence with scores of 76 but since then Mike's score has remained steady at 76 while Tebow's has jumped to 86 and his Twitter following has grown from 340-970k! Drew Brees, my personal favorite has also taken over Vick moving, into the second position.

If you've been living under a rock the past two month's then you've still been bombarded with Tebow fever. It’s inescapable, especially on Twitter and even more so on game day.  Say what you will about this colorful QB, but you can’t deny his ability to promote himself and his mission(s).  Win or lose, expect Tim to be a trending topic again today. 

Before sharing the data, we’re sharing a little fun.  Last week Conan Obrien recreated Tebow’s latest godlike game winning performance with his “Peanut Players”.  If you haven’t seen it yet, check it out:

A few more fun facts

For the most part the quarterbacks who have risen in both Twitter followers and Klout score are in the playoffs.  One situation where that isn’t the case is Jay Cutler.  That said, he’s still out influenced by his fiancé Kristin Cavallari who has about 4 times the followers and is 10 times more attractive, although judging by her twitter profile pic she is also really tired?

While I’m on the spousal kick, how about Matt Hasselbeck’s wife, Elizabeth?  The Tennessee Titan’s QB appears to be focusing more on football while its clear his wife and talk show host spends more time building her brand.  She’s out-Klouted him by 5 with a 67. 

Without further ado, here’s the list.  It will be interesting to see what happens in the off season with these guys…maybe we’ll do another update around draft time.  Now turn off your computers, head to your neighborhood sports bar and get your hash tags ready.  #tebow, #miracle, #hailmary…

Happy tweeing,

@gknutson

Post by @gknutson

This afternoon I logged into Klout for the first time in a few days.  After doling out a few +K to influencers on my favorite topic (yes, it's Klout I'm a...) I quickly hopped over to the Perks page to see if anything new was live.  And boy was there ever.  One like I'd never seen before.  This one is brough to you by T-Mobile and the CES , the consumer technology trade show currently happening NOW in Las Vegas, NV. 

What makes this Klout Perk different?

For starters its only "live" through the trade show which ends runs this week only, ending on Friday.  More unique is how the perk is fullfilled.  Traditional Klout Perks (I know, saying traditional Klout Perk sounds funny...like they've been around since the 80's or something) are given to Klout users based on a chosen combination of score, topics a person is influential in and in some cases geography.  This starts that way then takes a twist into a two-step perk: 

The first step is adding CES2012 to your topics.

The second step, or how to "fulfill" the perk, is to becomme a top 3+K recipient in that topic.  The top +K recipient gets a tablet.  Number two (no, not that one) gets a phone.  The third ranked gets a wifi card. 

So, what's the takaway for you marketers out there?  Klout is willing to try anything.  They are a young company who appear to be practicing agile development not only in their alorithm but their business model as well. 

If you dont like how Klout.com works, or if have an idea of how it could be done better then tell them.  The T-Mobile / CES Perk started as one person;s little idea that quickly became a reality. 

What's your idea? 

Oh, and now that I've written a blog post with CES in the title, it's about time you gave me +K on the subject ;)

Regards,

@gknutson