Sitting on Klout 9
Posted by Luc in 
Today, we would like to feature a very useful and somewhat unknown Social Media tool. We say unknown, because unless you have absolutely needed to use it or are heavily involved in Social Media, you likely have not heard of it. But with an increasing amount of people owning accounts on multiple platforms of Social Media, we thought we would share it with you.
It’s called Klout, and it’s a website that lets you easily track your online influence via Twitter (it’s in the process of integrating Facebook). Basically you enter all your account info, and then it tabulates your “true reach”, “amplification”, and “network”. The True Reach is the size of your engaged audience, hence it’s how many of your followers are truly paying attention, via retweets or lists. The Amplification measures how spread out and various those true followers are, as in where they live, how diverse they are (always the same people or different ones), and how much you are tweeting/how many @replies you are getting. And finally, the Network score measures how influential those you interact with are themselves, as in, what their Klout score is like. Basically, if important people are @replying you and retweeting you.
As mentioned above, Facebook has now been included, as of just this morning, which will likely help the service blow up. With Facebook integration, users can now track the number of unique ‘Likers’, commenters, and comments they have. As the site continues to expand, it can’t be long before they add a Foursquare, YouTube, and LinkedIn option as well.
To demonstrate, I included a screenshot of my Klout score (which is 21…I don’t know what that means yet). Follow me @lgdoucet to help my score!
To join, check out www.klout.com
Mind the Gap
Just last week, The Gap revealed a brand new logo (top, left), one that was supposed to give the massive store chain a much more Post Modern and sleek look. The logo contained the signature three letter name of the store, but in a new font, and with a random blue half faded box slightly behind the letter P.
The image went viral, understandably so, seeing as how there are several million Gap customers out there who are online. But it didn’t spread the way the retail had intended. Within days, a website popped up where users were invited to protest the new logo by typing in whatever word they wished instead of G-A-P (check it out here). A fake Twitter account showed up too (it has almost 5,000 followers already), protesting the new logo. And in classic new age Social Media fashion, the tactics worked!
The Gap has announced that it is pulling the new logo, and reverting back to the same classic navy blue with white letters that it has sported for the past two decades. They broadcast the news on their Facebook page, stating “We only want what’s best for the brand and our customers. So instead of crowdsourcing, we’re bringing back the Blue Box tonight.”
So pat yourself on the back, Social Media users. This is just another small victory on the long road to taking power back from large corporations using tools everyone has access to.
I’m lovin’ it: Mcdonalds wins big with Foursquare
In late summer 2009, a girl who lived above me was telling me about her Twitter account and how much fun she was having with it. She told Twitter was here to stay, and that once everyone settled into the mass updating service, they would increase their social media with a nifty geo-based website called Foursquare. She said it would be the hottest thing of 2010. I balked, saying people could never be convinced to reveal their location. And now, thanks to Mcdonald’s latest successful campaign, I’m finally admitting that I may have been wrong.
Mcdonald’s road to Social Media success first caught some attention in 2007, when they launched a campaign online to have users create their own ads for a Honey Mustard Snack Wrap. Then, in 2009, they purchased Wayport, a prolific wifi company, to provide wireless free internet at all its locations (something I didn’t even know until the other day), which almost coincided with the fast food giant trying to break into the coffee industry by offering specialized caffeine drinks.
And then just a few weeks ago, Mcdonald’s increased their Foursquare Check-ins by 33% in just one day. And although check-ins don’t necessarily mean purchases, it definitely means foot traffic to their various locations. They accomplished this by announcing they would be offering a limited amount of $5 and $10 coupons to their customers who checked-in using foursquare, and the tactic may have set a standard for big chains using geo-location media. Heck, it could set a precedent for the whole advertising industry, which spends countless Billions every year on attracting customers.
The cost of such a potential industry crushing experiment? A measly $1,000 (the cost of the coupons).
And with that, Mcdonald’s has successfully integrated the latest Social Media software into new (or returning customers). I guess my former neighbor wasn’t so crazy after all. You could almost say she was Lovin’ It before I even knew about it.
Be sure to check out Mashable’s reaction.
Twitter’s upcoming move on analytics
Ross Hoffman of Twitter’s Business Development team has recently announced plans to release a free analytics dashboard in the last quarter of 2010. The dashboard will have full functionality for those looking to see how their network functions in terms of retweets and the overall effectiveness of their communications. Tools for analyzing individual users, networks and influence will be included.
Although the service was announced at a summit for sports management, it is sure to be of use to all sorts of businesses seeking to interact through twitter. Now analytics will be available past abstract measures of success beyond followers and number of retweets.
The decision is an interesting one on twitter’s part. The company, which has had trouble with coming up with monetization as part of its business plan, is currently planning to offer the new analytic functions for free. The question is, will it stay this way? It wouldn’t be surprising to see Twitter rolling out another version of the analytic software with improved functionality a few months down the line, or starting to charge for the current analytics package (although this would likely cause a loss in good will that would be dangerous for a social network company)
Photo courtesy of Keven Lin
The New Twitter: Yay or Yawn
Yesterday at its headquarters in San Francisco, Twitter unveiled the new design that will soon be available to all of its users. The design will allow users to easily share photos and videos, in an effort to circumvent Facebook as the main source of social interaction in the online community.
Rather than try and explain exactly how it works and how Twitter wants you to use it, we’ll let their video do the talking. Watch for the new twitter very soon though!
The Little Social Medialite that could
The power of Social Media is an untapped resource with unlimited potential. For the past few years, people have begun to wonder just how much strength one individual can draw from a few simple posts. With Twitter rising exponentially in the ranks, new precedent setting cases are surfacing of every day people voicing their unhappiness via their tweets, and actually getting a response.
Meet Breanna Hughes, an ambitious Social Medialite and dating blogger who has seemingly conquered all the latest mediums. According to her Twitter she is even mayor of a few locations on Foursquare and has over 3,600 followers.
A few weeks ago, Breanna made a trip down to the States, and was outraged at the length of her cell phone bill upon her return. She had not expected to be charged so harshly for twittering and texting while down South, and she voiced her frustrations on Twitter along with a photo of her bill. Within a day, she was contacted by Rogers (her cell phone provider) via some tweets, and was given the contact info for a department that eventually adjusted her bill. Her case garnered serious attention in Toronto, and her story was featured in The National Post.
Could this symbolize a new era in the field of Public Relations? There have been other similar cases in the past where companies dealt with complaints made via Social Media, but Hughes actually managed to get her bill changed. And with that victory, it can only be left to wonder how soon will be before we no longer need customer supports phone lines to voice our concerns?