Beware of the Klout-Happy Prophets

Gathering steam during his presentation to industry peers, the speaker paused. "Why would we target all of our company's followers when Klout allows us to see who's most influential? That's why we're zeroing in on those with the higher Klout scores."

On the surface, this approach would seem to make sense. Why speak to the masses when you can zero in on audiences who can best amplify your message? Right? No, WRONG!

Blindly segmenting your followers (or targeted followers) solely based on Klout scores and insights is dangerous. Consider the following:

• A Klout score does not indicate a person's level of influence regarding a particular topic, although the tool tries to make sense of issues being discussed. If you're a commercial food products company, do you really care that Alicia has a 68 score when that's based on her expertise in scrapbooking?
• The "Influential About" categorization is still hit or miss. A person in my office recently mentioned how she was designated as a Seinfeld expert, yet that's among her least favorite shows of all time (nor did she ever remember mentioning Seinfeld in any of her posts).
• Users can somewhat manipulate their scores, linking only to social networks in which they've built a solid base of followers, while leaving others unlinked.
• Scores can fluctuate wildly. Case in point -- following a international teleseminar that I conducted for Ragan Communications last month, my score shot up by nearly 25 points. Why? Because I used Twitter to conduct Q&A over the course of a couple hours.

Don't get me wrong. Measuring influence and influencers is a step in the right direction for the communications and marketing professionals, and Klout provides a glimpse of what might be. That's fascinating, and we're in on the ground floor.

But at the same time, remember that Klout is a new tool that can be over-emphasized. As opposed to thinking about its scores in the absolute sense, use them as directional indicators worthy of more exploration.

And remember that no matter what Klout says, I am not influential about lambs (seriously, lambs... I'm still scratching my head on that one)!

Do CES Innovations Awards Matter?

Sorting through the mail, the logo was instantly recognizable. A sphere of orange hovering on a jet black background. The time to enter the annual International CES Innovations Awards competition is upon us once again.

For nearly four decades, this design and engineering honors program has called out the most promising products in the consumer electronics industry, shining the spotlight a bit brighter on select offerings from across the globe. But in an age where awards are a dime a dozen, does an Innovations badge matter?

Having prepared winning entries for the like of Yamaha, Kodak and Turtle Beach over the past 15+ years, I still answer with a resounding yes. Not only does the award attract attention from media and digital enthusiasts prior to the annual CES show, but it also provides recognition for the R&D and design teams who often go overlooked as rapid CE launch cycles fly by. In short, it's all in how you merchandise it.

So how do you win? Drop me a line, and I'll be happy to share some tips and tricks.

Get Out There: Your Brand Beyond the Office

The light turned green, and my car lurched forward with all the others yesterday afternoon. Changing lanes, I looked up to find myself behind a Pepsi truck. Or was it...?

While I could make out the familiar red top of the Pepsi orb, most of it had been plastered over by a bright orange Gatorade logo (which also covered some of the safety tags on the back of the big rig).

Would the good folks at PepsiCo -- Gatorade's parent -- see this as an unforgivable transgression? Probably not. The trucking group was probably doing as it was told from an office hundreds of miles away, using a one-size-fits-all adhesive film.

But at the same time, would the brand managers for both Pepsi and Gatorade have any inkling that, in all likelihood, other trucks across the region or country were displaying the same type of bastardized logo application?

By the same token, does the USAirways marketing team know that its blue and white logo glows hot red at LaGuardia's gate 9 (plus other lovely colors on additional screens, which have long outlived their intended life)?

Never has it been more critical for brand and communications pros to remove themselves from their offices, and get out into the field to see how their products and companies are being represented. I know the arguments against doing so -- travel budgets are being cut, there's too much on the plate already, and that social media provides a good set of alternative eyes and ears.

Without seeing -- experiencing! -- the brand for themselves in its most far-flung places, we can't fully understand where and why inconsistencies might occur. Get out there, and as a bonus, you'll win the respect of colleagues operating in those regions -- the very folks who regularly complain that headquarters knows little about operating in their neck of the woods.

I'm reminded of sitting in San Francisco one evening with the CMO of Kodak's consumer business. The company was in the midst of an identity shift -- a concerted move to digital with a redesigned logo. We'd just been discussing the significant cost to take that on, and how there were so many "legacy" players to reach -- labs, mom-and-pop retailers, and more

At that very moment, the storefront lights of Fisherman's Wharf twinkled on, illuminating the streetscape below. Our eyes both scanned the horizon to see dozens of yellow "KODAK" signs advertising film, instant prints and more -- retailers that weren't even on our radar.

With a deep breath and growing grin, my dining companion -- one of the most brilliant marketers I've ever known -- expressed the situation perfectly: "Well... shit. We have some more work to do."

Enough with the excuses. Get out there, and live your brand in the shoes of your customers.

PAETEC: A Communications Perspective

This morning's announcement of a planned sale of Rochester-headquartered PAETEC Holding Corp. by Windstream Corp. has set off speculation around the community as to what may or may not occur.

Having been a participant in a recent large company deal (Warburg Pincus' acquisition of Bausch & Lomb), the rumors sound familiar. Fair enough -- this type of deal breeds uncertainty and nervousness, and neither Windstream nor PAETEC will be able to immediately calm the waters.

What's likely to emerge from PAETEC in the weeks to come?

1. SILENCE. Until PAETEC issues its proxy statement to shareholders, don't expect any additional, credible details to emerge. Both companies have an obligation to share the same information with all shareholders, so any media interviews, employee meetings, or other on-the-record conversations will only repeat what's already offered up in this morning's news release.

2. REPETITION. Once the proxy is issued, the companies' communications teams will have little latitude to add color commentary to what's described in its pages. From a legal perspective, this could be viewed as providing an unfair advantage to shareholders not receiving such commentary. Instead, look for the common themes from the proxy to be repeated (in most cases, verbatim).

3. REASSURANCE. While Windstream appears to be focused on PAETEC's "network assets, an expansive fiber infrastructure, and larger data center footprint," the company will also do its best to assuage the fears of PAETEC employees. This will most likely take the form of vague reiterations of the commitment to company culture instead of delving into any specifics. Why? Because if any detail is revealed as to restructuring, staffing levels, etc. that isn't contained in the proxy agreement, the companies will be subject to shareholder suits.

Is this type of environment conducive to a positive workplace environment or community support prior to the deal close? Absolutely not. Unfortunately, there's little wiggle room if the company wants to see the acquisition approved as quickly as possible while keeping litigation to a minimum.