With all the grumbling over Klout's lack of transparency and limited selection of social sources contributing to user scores, its announcement today about major changes it is making already is creating huge shock waves through the social world.
San Francisco-based Klout is getting a new look and expanded metrics in measuring our online influence. Key developments:
- More transparency, via a feature called "moments" that highlights your recent social media activity. Yes, you now can see this yourself.
- More data, a big move toward real-world influence. Twelve billion data points analyzed daily, up from 1 billion
- Increased accuracy that reflects broader data (and higher scores for most of the 100 million users)
Klout CEO Joe Fernandez assures us that "with these updates, we've concentrated on helping everyone to gain a clearer, more accurate understanding of how they influence other people through the ideas they share."
Will this assuage critics who've made Klout a favorite whipping boy?
Chris Voss, posting on his online Chris Voss Show, says it's a big step in the right direction. Admittedly a fan of Klout from the outset who participates on a "Klout Squad" that provides advice and feedback to the company, believes the changes better measure users' online influence.
He advocates greater patience as Klout improves its ability to integrate the right information into its methodology.
Other reactions to the announcement:
Klout Revamps, Delivers Reality Check
Biebs, move over for Obama: Klout score changes bring new users to the top
Klout Revises Its Algorithy - But Fear Not, It Says Most Scores Will Go Up
Curiously, as USA Today reports, the changes raise President Obama's Klout score to a near-perfect 99, from 94. But singing idol Justin Bieber drops from 100 to 92!
Social Media Today contributor Pam Moore wrote last November about Why I Deleted My Klout Profile and contributor Rohn Jay Miller penned a similar Delete Your Klout Profile Now!, so I await their verdict on this new development.
Prevous Klout-related posts:
What is Klout and Why DO We Care? Or Do We?
Klout Responds to Questions and Critics
5 Conclusions from the New Klout Scoring & Changes
Stop the Social Puppetry for Klout ad Other Influence Metrics
Why people hate Klout, and how to fix it