Klout: Just the Fun Stuff (The Pros)

Klout is something you're going to hear about a lot more as the years go by, even if this particular venue doesn't last. It's just the idea of being able to see how much of an impact you make on the world.

Sure, it's this entirely metaphysical representation, but you've gotta face the facts: People like to feel important. So any way to kind of assess your place in the world is just really frickin' awesome. It's like an instant boost of confidence and endorphins and you just feel validated for the rest of the day.

It's a very powerful feeling - to know that you're important in some way. Even if it's just for your love of spaghetti.




And for professionals, Klout is cool because it gives you an idea of how you or your product is being perceived by the world at large.

So basically, it's a service that takes all the parts of your social media life and puts them together to present you with a single score that tells you how much of an influence you have on the people around you. From 1 to 100, you are rated to show just how important you are to the world - those people outside of your personal family.

Even if you don't have a Twitter or Facebook or any other kind of social media account, you still probably have a Klout score, either as an Influencer or as a Topic. That's right, if your family or friends talk about you online, it gives you a score. Even if that score happens to be a 1.

But you really want a score higher than that. Why? Because the more Klout you have, the more Perks you get. And Perks are these awesome free giveaways from different businesses that see your influence and want to reward you in the hopes that you'll share whether you like them or not.

You don't have to, though. The Perks are free and dependent on your score, but you don't have to mention whatever gift a business gives you to anyone at all.

Perks are like celebrity grab bags. When you have a high Klout score, you're basically famous (or infamous, depending on who you are.) So you get free stuff and awesome opportunities just for being you.

Why wouldn't you sign up for Klout? You signed up for Facebook and Twitter didn't you? And if you haven't, that's cool too. Though this post is obviously not for you, I hope you at least find some amusement here. (Watch the video. It's great.)

Go to Klout.com and register with either your Twitter, Facebook, Google+, or Wordpress blog. That's basically it.

Joining Klout was probably one of the easiest sign ups I've ever made in my life. I have just fallen madly in love with the bright orange and white.

Look at the video below. It's funny and stupid and it's totally this giant metaphor about Klout - when you interact with the world you influence yourself and the people around you. When you don't interact, you're slow as fuck.

Plus I love the stupid little "Ha ha" he says and that smile whenever he does something. So awesome.