On a whim, I decided to compare the 2012 Iowa Caucus results to the Klout scores of the individual Republican candidates, with a few “celebrities” thrown in.
The results didn’t really surprise me, but it was a fun exercise …
Take a look:
This chart confirms what we already know: Klout is simply a measure of online influence, not real world influence! Still it is fun to compare:
- Mitt Romney topped the list in Klout and also won in Iowa
- Mitt’s “Klout” just edges out that of B-Lister Kathy Griffin, who beat all of the other candidates:)
- Warren Buffet, despite his real world influence, trails both Kathy Griffin and all the other candidates
- Jon Huntsman, despite his “Klout” of 70, came in dead last with 1% of the Iowa caucus vote.
Next time you look at your Klout score, and feel that shallow little lift when it moves up (Yay!) or feel crestfallen when it dips (Wah!) … remember Iowa!
Oh, by the way: do you use the Klout Chrome extension to identify influencers and use that in your marketing efforts? It’s a very useful tool, and I highly recommend it.
More importantly, please weigh in: do you think brands can use Klout to drive business results in any real way?
