Why Klout's Social Influence Scores Are Nonsense

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Why Klout's Social Influence Scores Are Nonsense

Posted by Soulskill on Wednesday October 3, 2012 @06:32AM from the another-system-to-game dept.

jfruh writes "Klout is a new social media service that attempts to quantify how much 'influence' you have, based on your social media profile. Their metrics are bizarre — privacy blogger Dan Tynan has been rated as highly influential on the topic of cigars, despite having only smoked one, decades ago. Nevertheless, Klout scores have real-world consequences, with people deemed influential getting discounts on concert tickets or free access to airport VIP lounges (in hopes that they'll tweet about it, presumably)."

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A product for a problem that does not exist by h2okies · 2012-10-03 06:37 · Score: 5, Insightful

and will likely never will. From the last /. on this if people are hiring you based on your "klout" you should probably be looking elsewhere for a better managed place to work. If you are looking for free shit all the time then I guess a higher "Klout" score might actually be worth something to you...

--
Beware the Lollipop of Mediocrity, Lick it once and you suck forever.
1. Re:A product for a problem that does not exist by fuzzyfuzzyfungus · 2012-10-03 06:40 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  You could think of Klout as performing the valuable public service of identifying the sort of people who would take Klout seriously, sort of like those chemical attractant baits used on flypaper and similar insect traps.
2. Re:A product for a problem that does not exist by crazyjj · 2012-10-03 06:57 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  Why can't we just stick to the system that has worked for decades? Judge a man based not on his Klout, but by his penis size or the value of his car.
  
  --
  What political party do you join when you don't like Bible-thumpers *or* hippies?
3. Re:A product for a problem that does not exist by SimonTheSoundMan · 2012-10-03 07:06 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  I prefer this: http://klouchebag.com/
4. Re:A product for a problem that does not exist by mozumder · 2012-10-03 07:08 · Score: 4, Interesting
  
  There's definitely a "nerd-centric" influence for klout. It really measures online activity more than real-world influence. A big problem with it is that it doesn't account for non-measurable factors, such as power and art direction. In the industry I'm in, fashion, art direction determines your overall influence . And its editors figure out who have the best art direction, since the public trusts their editing skills more than computer algorithms.
  And you don't even need to be on the internet to be taken seriously. Karl Lagerfeld doesn't use the web- he still sends "email" via fax machines. The top fashion magazines barely have usable websites, yet they'll always remain far more influential than any blogger ever will, because Klout can't actually measure influence, because, again, computers are never going to be able to replace human editors at that.
  Klout really is fundamentally doomed. Klout can only work as a paid service if they can hire paid & specialized editors that measure influence of each property, which is an expensive business plan.
  The bigger problem I see is that too many Venture Capitalists are trying to find cheap computer profits to problems only solvable by expensive human experts. Sorry Venture Capitalist, it's just not going to happen. Go back to making money the old-fashioned way, by earning it.
5. Re:A product for a problem that does not exist by bluefoxlucid · 2012-10-03 07:13 · Score: 1
  
  Because we're better off judging a man by how he handles blackjack and hookers.
  
  --
  Support my political activism on Patreon.
6. Re:A product for a problem that does not exist by partyguerrilla · 2012-10-03 07:16 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  Perhaps they could build one for Aspergers-wannabes
  They have
7. Re:A product for a problem that does not exist by Gilmoure · 2012-10-03 09:10 · Score: 1
  
  What is this "fashion" you speak of? I'm 45 and still wear pretty much the same kind of clothes I wore when I was 10; sneakers, jeans, t-shirt. Gotta love IT work.
  
  --
  I drank what? -- Socrates
8. Re:A product for a problem that does not exist by hairyfish · 2012-10-03 13:58 · Score: 3, Interesting
  
  We're nearly the same age. When I was10 I had flared jeans and a tight shirt with rainbow colours, When I was 13 or 14 I bought some tapered jeans and a black t-shirt. By Uni I had traded these for baggy jeans and a white t-shirt, and just recently I bought some skinny jeans and t-shirt with some writing on it. I expect sometime in the next 10 years to probably get some baggy jeans again and maybe a new t-shirt. I think this is what they mean by fashion :)
9. Re:A product for a problem that does not exist by Gilmoure · 2012-10-03 15:25 · Score: 1
  
  What's funny is, now that daughter is getting into geek stuff (Star Wars, comics, Doctor Who), I'm getting t-shirts with some of the same things I had back in the 70's. For now the kid thinks its cool when I dress like this. I'm sure that'll change when the teen years start.
  
  --
  I drank what? -- Socrates
I bet my Klout score by AliasMarlowe · 2012-10-03 06:38 · Score: 2

I bet my Klout score is near zero; my clout is not.
No twitter, facebook, etc. accounts, and use pseudonyms in most places. But I do have a LinkedIn account under my real name.

--
Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. - Voltaire
1. Re:I bet my Klout score by TheRaven64 · 2012-10-03 08:22 · Score: 2
  
  I'm British and I've never heard that. Checking on urban dictionary, apparently no one else has either...
  
  --
  I am TheRaven on Soylent News
2. Re:I bet my Klout score by Spad · 2012-10-03 09:02 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  No it isn't. You can't just make this stuff up, you know, there are British people on the internet now.
3. Re:I bet my Klout score by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 09:45 · Score: 0
  
  You're probably English. No Scot or Welsh person would claim to be British, likewise with those from NI.
4. Re:I bet my Klout score by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 15:03 · Score: 0
  
  #4, #6 definition for clout on urban dictionary
5. Re:I bet my Klout score by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 19:49 · Score: 0
  
  Reading comprehension fail. Look again.
Kout's real strength.. by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 06:38 · Score: 1, Insightful

.. Is to judge one's ability to brown nose and game pointless metrics.
So yes, they're able to pick ideal middle management candidates.
1. Re:Kout's real strength.. by ClickOnThis · 2012-10-03 06:57 · Score: 2
  
  .. Is to judge one's ability to brown nose and game pointless metrics.
  Sounds a bit like Slashdot karma-whoring.
  
  --
  If it weren't for deadlines, nothing would be late.
XKCD! by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 06:39 · Score: 5, Interesting

XKCD says it all!
http://xkcd.com/1057/
1. Re:XKCD! by Hotawa+Hawk-eye · 2012-10-03 07:16 · Score: 2
  
  John Scalzi said something similar a few months before that, though not quite as extreme.
Never heard of Klout by Spy+Handler · 2012-10-03 06:40 · Score: 4, Insightful

and after it disappears as many dot-coms do, you won't have to hear about it again either.
1. Re:Never heard of Klout by GameboyRMH · 2012-10-03 07:33 · Score: 2
  
  I hope it does. I hope all attempts to establish "gatekeepers of reputation" fail. Klout, Angie's List, LinkedIn, and to a lesser extent in this case, Facebook. All of them, dead.
  
  --
  "When information is power, privacy is freedom" - Jah-Wren Ryel
2. Re:Never heard of Klout by fuzzyfuzzyfungus · 2012-10-03 07:52 · Score: 2
  
  Unfortunately, that will leave us with the old guard: Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax... And if you think that facebook is a screwjob run by sociopathic weasels...
3. Re:Never heard of Klout by GameboyRMH · 2012-10-03 08:05 · Score: 1
  
  Just the old guard is better than the old guard plus the newcomers, when it comes to privately-controlled worthiness metrics.
  
  --
  "When information is power, privacy is freedom" - Jah-Wren Ryel
4. Re:Never heard of Klout by Spy+Handler · 2012-10-03 09:43 · Score: 3, Informative
  
  and the old guard is regulated by federal consumer protection laws... they have to remove your bad credit after 7 years and give you a free report every year, etc.
5. Re:Never heard of Klout by Gilmoure · 2012-10-03 10:19 · Score: 1
  
  I still have my CueCat!
  
  --
  I drank what? -- Socrates
Klouchebags! by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 06:41 · Score: 3, Funny

If I had a person stick their Klout score on their resume I'd beat them with a wiffle bat.
Related: http://www.klouchebag.com/
1. Re:Klouchebags! by MachDelta · 2012-10-03 06:50 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  I sincerely hope "wiffle" is how you spell "aluminum" in your nation or culture.
2. Re:Klouchebags! by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 06:54 · Score: 0
  
  What an odd culture you must live in. I will admit, though, your local dialect seems more efficient, in that it apparently takes you two words to convey the same thing mine does in the four words "rusty piece of rebar".
3. Re:Klouchebags! by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 07:09 · Score: 0
  
  Rusty rebar makes a lousy grip for your pistol.
4. Re:Klouchebags! by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 07:22 · Score: 0
  
  Funny, I don't think a pistol would fire a piece of rebar very far. Try a railgun instead.
5. Re:Klouchebags! by EZLeeAmused · 2012-10-03 07:25 · Score: 1
  
  If I had a person stick their Klout score on their resume I'd beat them with a wiffle bat.
  Related: http://www.klouchebag.com/
  Don't you mean, a whuffie bat?
  
  --
  Some see the vessel as half full; others see it as half-empty; We pour it out on the floor and laugh
6. Re:Klouchebags! by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 09:23 · Score: 0
  
  No, he had it right.... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wiffle_ball
  Nathan
7. Re:Klouchebags! by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 09:30 · Score: 0
  
  Or buy your own...
  https://shop.ctstore.com/store/pc/viewCategories.asp?idCategory=4
  Nathan
8. Re:Klouchebags! by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 12:12 · Score: 0
  
  I suppose you mean aluminium
Backward News. by SolitaryMan · 2012-10-03 06:42 · Score: 4, Insightful

This "news" is kind of backwards. It would be news if it turned out that it *does* make any sort of sense.

--
May Peace Prevail On Earth
1. Re:Backward News. by garcia · 2012-10-03 07:00 · Score: 3, Insightful
  
  There was a recent job posting for some marketing company (I forget the name; I'm sure if you do a Google search you'll find it) that wanted a Klout score above 35 to be hired.
  1. I have a 48 Klout score and while I work with marketing data analytics, I am not influential on any topics, at all.
  2. If someone needs to have a 35+ on Klout, that shows just how irrelevant this number is for a marketing gig.
  3. The fact that companies are interested in this number means someone is trying to make it relevant and thus the entire thing is scary as shit.
  --
  While Klout apparently believes I'm most influential in the "Twin Cities", "Food" and "Games" and one could make an argument for the first two, the third is just batshit crazy.
  Klout is meaningless and should be completely ignored.
2. Re:Backward News. by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 07:13 · Score: 1
  
  I checked it out a while back and it listed "Style," "New Jersey," and "Typewriter" as three of my most influential topics. Style is clearly wrong, I don't have any dealings with New Jersey, and even Klout doesn't know what Typewriter means. So yeah, lots of meaningful information here.
3. Re:Backward News. by commodore73 · 2012-10-03 07:29 · Score: 1
  
  Even worse, the slashdot summary says klout is a "new" social media service. How long can a "new" description last on the Internet? I seem to remember some laws about how long companies could keep the "new" label on "new" products. Seems that should even be shorter for Internet concepts.
4. Re:Backward News. by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 07:57 · Score: 0
  
  If you hire marketing people based on anything other than what hearsay says about them you're doing it wrong.
5. Re:Backward News. by NeutronCowboy · 2012-10-03 08:04 · Score: 2
  
  It looks like that company was Salesforce. Quite frankly, I'm not entirely surprised. Their HR department is completely clueless, and wings things on a regular basis.
  
  --
  Those who can, do. Those who can't, sue.
6. Re:Backward News. by SolitaryMan · 2012-10-03 12:43 · Score: 1
  
  3. The fact that companies are interested in this number means someone is trying to make it relevant and thus the entire thing is scary as shit.
  This can actually work, unfortunately. Look at the credit score, for example. Nobody wants to think/research by themselves, they just want somebody to tell them: this is good, this is bad and take away all responsibility.
  Stupid, but before you know you may find yourself wondering, if the sites you are using report to Klout.
  
  --
  May Peace Prevail On Earth
Nah. by MrEricSir · 2012-10-03 06:43 · Score: 2

No, I'd say their real strength is their ability to score how many spammers follow you on Twitter. If you frequently tweet keywords that attract spambot followers, you'll have a very high Klout score.

--
There's no -1 for "I don't get it."
1. Re:Nah. by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 07:42 · Score: 0
  
  My point exactly. Ca you think of a more pointless metric?
  (Outside TPS report cover accuracy.)
2. Re:Nah. by Urza9814 · 2012-10-03 10:12 · Score: 2
  
  Klout does quite a bit of spamming on their own...
  I was getting constant requests to add their Facebook app before I finally banned it...which is annoying, but not necessarily their doing I know. But the thing is, _even when you clicked no_, it still redirected you to their website! Only app I've ever seen do that. That alone was enough to convince me that the company is full of jerks and I want nothing to do with it. Of course, the whole concept didn't help them there....everything I've seen about the project (which is far more than I'd like to know...) leads me to believe it's created and run by a bunch of self-centered egotistical assholes.
3. Re:Nah. by dwye · 2012-10-03 12:47 · Score: 1
  
  leads me to believe it's created and run by a bunch of self-centered egotistical assholes
  And this is different from other social media and Facebook-hangers-on HOW?
Call me old school by __aajgon4133 · 2012-10-03 06:47 · Score: 5, Funny

But I don't really care what your Klout score is. THAC0 is what really matters.
1. Re:Call me old school by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 06:50 · Score: 1
  
  To hit tables, son. THAC0 is what the n00bs use.
2. Re:Call me old school by somarilnos · 2012-10-03 07:01 · Score: 1
  
  In Soviet Russia, Armor Class 0 hits YOU.
3. Re:Call me old school by Darinbob · 2012-10-03 07:44 · Score: 2
  
  D20 is the bane of mankind.
4. Re:Call me old school by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 18:14 · Score: 0
  
  What matters most to me is FARTS
5. Re:Call me old school by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 21:00 · Score: 0
  
  +1
6. Re:Call me old school by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-04 02:37 · Score: 1
  
  +2 vs. undead
Klout itself is nonsense. by BLToday · 2012-10-03 06:56 · Score: 1

How is Klout useful for me?
Caste system. by wcrowe · 2012-10-03 06:56 · Score: 3, Insightful

Social warfare is getting to be bad enough. We don't need to further relegate people into different classes. Do we really want some sort of Hindu caste system? Klout needs to be Klobbered.

--
Proverbs 21:19
1. Re:Caste system. by fuzzyfuzzyfungus · 2012-10-03 07:55 · Score: 2
  
  Social warfare is getting to be bad enough. We don't need to further relegate people into different classes. Do we really want some sort of Hindu caste system? Klout needs to be Klobbered.
  Empirically speaking, it appears that we(in the aggregate) practically live for the chance to build absurd little social hierarchies, even when circumstances are such that the hierarchy won't significantly affect resource allocation... It's like we are just a few service packs away from being damn dirty apes or something.
2. Re:Caste system. by firewrought · 2012-10-03 09:02 · Score: 2
  
  Empirically speaking, it appears that we practically live for the chance to build absurd little social hierarchies
  Pfft... spoken like one with a 7-digit user ID. ;-O
  
  --
  -1, Too Many Layers Of Abstraction
3. Re:Caste system. by wcrowe · 2012-10-03 09:26 · Score: 1
  
  That literally made me LOL.
  
  --
  Proverbs 21:19
4. Re:Caste system. by wcrowe · 2012-10-03 09:37 · Score: 1
  
  That's a good point. Boarding an airplane these days is a perfect example.
  
  --
  Proverbs 21:19
5. Re:Caste system. by hairyfish · 2012-10-03 15:48 · Score: 2
  
  We had a startup airline a few years back that was all business class from front to back of the plane. Every seat Business Class. The company didn't last long, and went bankrupt. It seems people didn't want to travel business class unless they had some cattle class schmucks on-board to look down their noses at.
Clod? by gonzo_ks · 2012-10-03 06:58 · Score: 1

Not impressed. Gonna go sign up now.
Login with Twiiter or Facebook account, fuck you! by Nyder · 2012-10-03 06:59 · Score: 2

title says it all.
Any service that requires me to log in thru another source I will NOT use. It's bad enough i have a facebook account, but to actually use it, hell no. I hide from my relatives for a reason.

--
Be seeing you...
Because jfruh has a low one? by hawks5999 · 2012-10-03 07:06 · Score: 1

Maybe?
My Klout score by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 07:06 · Score: 2, Interesting

OK I'll check it out.
tappity tappity ENTER
KLOUT "Sign in" with Twitter (don't have) or Facebook (don't have) ....and I'm over it.
I'm also bothered by misspelling Kommon words for effekt.
1. Re:My Klout score by Pope · 2012-10-03 08:39 · Score: 1
  
  It's misspelled for branding reasons. At least it still has all the vowels and looks pronounceable.
  
  --
  It doesn't mean much now, it's built for the future.
Answer with no question by theurge14 · 2012-10-03 07:13 · Score: 1

I don't need some fancy new social media site to tell me that most of what I say on the Internet is delusional rants and unsupported claims.
Re:Bizarre Metrics by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 07:14 · Score: 0

Asians do well on IQ tests because of Asian Privilege. Didn't you get the memo?
Re:Login with Twiiter or Facebook account, fuck yo by Animats · 2012-10-03 07:14 · Score: 1

Right. Klout is essentially a promotion for Twitter/Facebook as a single sign-in system.
But it's fun! by JarekC · 2012-10-03 07:19 · Score: 5, Funny

C'mon, Klout is fun! Exactly because its metrics are so bizarre, it's really fun to check out yours and your friends' score, and compare it with some well known people. At my workplace we do it like every couple of days, and its like watching Monty Python. You can't keep a straight face when for example a guy sitting in the next cubicle suddenly turns out to be - according to Klout - more influential then the company CEO.
1. Re:But it's fun! by GameboyRMH · 2012-10-03 07:39 · Score: 1
  
  I'm almost tempted to sign up just to see what it will say.
  I'm the most influential person in the world on...designer ski boots? Oh yes, pay me big money, bitches!
  
  --
  "When information is power, privacy is freedom" - Jah-Wren Ryel
Surprise.... by mseeger · 2012-10-03 07:24 · Score: 1

A post from Cpt. Obvious. I guess you will be hard pressed to find people on Slashdot who actually think the Klout score really says something about another person.
The purpose of the Klout score is, that some day people somehow will pay Klout for increasing their Klout score ;-).
Metrics make perfect sense by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 07:25 · Score: 0

Their metrics are bizarre — privacy blogger Dan Tynan has been rated as highly influential on the topic of cigars, despite having only smoked one, decades ago.
The metrics make perfect sense when you understand the reason: the purpose of Klout is to promote Klout.
Re:Login with Twiiter or Facebook account, fuck yo by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 07:25 · Score: 1

Not sure if this is a joke or not - klout is one service where single-sign on actually makes sense!
the Chinese is all about the test and not much on by Joe_Dragon · 2012-10-03 07:28 · Score: 1

the Chinese is all about the test and not much on undering staining what the test covers.
Wrong metrics by vlm · 2012-10-03 07:33 · Score: 1

Their metrics are bizarre ...
... if they were using /. UID numbers and ./ Karma and the /. friend/foe network and all that, I bet the results would be far more informative.
I think /. should allow klout linking... I think it would really further my career to be known as highly influential WRT goatse, TRS-80s, and being grouchy.

--
"Science flies us to the moon. Religion flies us into buildings." - Victor Stenger
horse_ebooks by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 07:39 · Score: 0

I assume we're all familiar with @horse_ebooks, seeing as it's been reported on in innumerable places including the New York Times; if not, just know that it's a spam bot on Twitter which, to appear to be human, tweets randomly-selected phrases, occasionally to comedic effect.
Anyway, a while back, this spambot's score on Klout overtook that of Twitter founder Jack Dorsey's. In fact, it's overtaken a number of "social media gurus" who proceeded to rant and rave about this injustice.
Google it up, it's pretty hilarious.
1. Re:horse_ebooks by GameboyRMH · 2012-10-03 07:53 · Score: 1
  
  I've read up on it, the phenomenon is pretty funny, but what I'm after specifically is the delicious lulz from self-important "social media gurus." Can anyone find anything? Bonus if there are pics and the person looks like a total hipster.
  
  --
  "When information is power, privacy is freedom" - Jah-Wren Ryel
Real-world consequences by jopsen · 2012-10-03 07:46 · Score: 1

Klout scores have real-world consequences, with people deemed influential getting discounts on concert tickets or free access to airport VIP lounges
Wow, that's some really horrible real-world consequences... Can we move along...
Advertising by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 07:47 · Score: 0

This article smells like Product Placement/Advertisement wrapped in the guise of a news story. Come on moderators...
1. Re:Advertising by DragonWriter · 2012-10-03 08:31 · Score: 1
  
  This article smells like Product Placement/Advertisement wrapped in the guise of a news story.
  
  Welcome to Slashdot.
2. Re:Advertising by Magada · 2012-10-04 04:05 · Score: 1
  
  Welcome to New Slashdot.
  FTFY
  
  --
  Something bad is coming when people are suddenly anxious to tell the truth.
Re:Bizarre Metrics by hazah · 2012-10-03 08:33 · Score: 2

And we all know, it's those damn pigments that are at fault here. Right? Is that your point?
Do newmedia douchebags like it? by Pope · 2012-10-03 08:43 · Score: 2

http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/26/using-a-social-media-rating-to-help-people-not-judge-them/
http://parislemon.com/post/29563509395/under-the-influence-of-klout
http://uncrunched.com/2012/08/16/why-i-changed-my-mind-on-klout-and-invested/
Yes? Then ignore and move on.

--
It doesn't mean much now, it's built for the future.
Klout is krap. by SvnLyrBrto · 2012-10-03 08:50 · Score: 2

Warren Buffett and Bill Gates have lower Klout scores than Justin Bieber. Until this summer, so did President Obama. And as far as I could tell, Steve Jobs never had Klout at all. And this is a metric that I'm supposed to take seriously? I think not.

--
Imagine all the people...
Score:8, Klout-tastic by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 08:54 · Score: 0

Klout is like Digg (or was that Reddit) for Wordpress which is like Blogger (or was that tumblr) for newz.
privacy blogger Dan Tynan cigars by sumdumass · 2012-10-03 09:54 · Score: 2, Insightful

Did anyone else read this and think it was just some sort of inside joke or coy insult to insinuate Tynan blows a lot of smoke up things?
Negative klout? by psithurism · 2012-10-03 10:08 · Score: 2

I never signed up for klout, but one time I facebook-statused about an app and a friend that I thought was going to buy it did not. My amazon reviews are usually rated less helpful that
So, now I'm starting to wonder...do I have negative klout? Maybe people pay us for negative reviews and give us free samples of their competitors products?
Re:Bizarre Metrics by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 12:34 · Score: 0

Bang on. So, since this is /. you're naturally trashed for it.
Re:the Chinese is all about the test and not much by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 15:34 · Score: 1

You don't study for IQ tests. Either you have the intelligence to do well on them or you don't.
Re:Bizarre Metrics by Anonymous Coward · 2012-10-03 15:53 · Score: 0

... because pigmentation is the only difference between the races?
Re:Bizarre Metrics by yahwotqa · 2012-10-03 18:49 · Score: 2

Whoosh, baby, whoosh!
Re:Bizarre Metrics by hazah · 2012-10-04 03:04 · Score: 1

Are you for real?? This is a serious question? Even IF what you suggest is true, there's still no data on what the specific differences *are*. Your personal haphazard observations are statistically insignificant. We have a long way to go before we can even define what a human is to begin with, let alone what the variants truly are. Stop being stupid, you'll live happier.