The Official Klout Blog

In our mission to become the standard for influence, the next step was remarkably clear. We needed to include text messaging into the Klout algorithm. Through text messaging our friends tell us where to go to dinner, what bar to check-out, their latest job change, and who to ping for that late night booty call.

After many months of meetings and negotiations, we are proud to announce that we have made a deal with all major carriers to access 90% of text messages throughout the continental United States. We will analyze these messages to better understand your influence.

Text messaging will be taken into account in your overall Klout Score, Network Score, True Reach, and topics.

Q+A

Q: When will I see my text messaging influence in my Klout Score?
A: We are rolling in text messaging influence over the next few days. Currently about 20% of users have new scores and we should reach 100% by Monday.

Q: How is Klout able to associate my texts with my account?
A: Through your cell phone carrier we are able to access your full name and email address which we can then associate back to a Klout account in most cases. If you find this is missing from your account, we will soon release a feature to be able to manually add your text message influence for calculation.

Q: How can I increase my text messaging Klout?
A: As always, it all about engagement. Make sure you’re producing consistent, high-quality SMS content. If your friend asks how you’re doing, don’t just respond “awesome,” why not say “awesome and I think you should go to Bourbon and Branch tonight.” If they end up going (we can track the GPS in their phone), we will know you have influenced their decisions.

UPDATE: Yes, this was an April Fool’s joke. Clearly, our next network will be the US Postal Service :).