Digital influence is one of the most fascinating and widely debated trends in social media today. Whether or not you agree with the idea of assigning a score to individuals based on their actions in popular social networks, the reality is that Pandora’s Box has already been open. People check the scores like investors check stock prices. Brands reward “influential” consumers with products and services. Employers consult scores to lure seemingly more qualified candidates. This is already happening and as…
The Pillars of Influence and How to Activate Cause and Effect
Digital Influence is one of the hottest trends in social media and it is also one of the least understood. Klout, PeerIndex, Kred among many others are investing millions of dollars to understand how our social media activity translates into influence. The market for influence is only heating up with more entrants expected to debut and acquisitions or mergers likely on the horizon. Within the last 90 days alone, Klout took in a Series C of $30 million from Kleiner…
Report: The Rise of Digital Influence and How to Measure It
About three weeks ago, I celebrated my first anniversary as Principal Analyst of Altimeter Group. And, it is with great pride that I mark the occasion with the release of my first official Altimeter report, “The Rise of Digital Influence.” Not a traditional market report, it was written as both a primer and a how-to guide for businesses to spark desirable effects and outcomes through social media influence. We live in a time when social networks such as Facebook, Twitter,…
Welcome to the EGOsystem: How Much Are You Worth?
What’s your Klout score? How many people follow you on Twitter? What’s your authority on Peerindex? How are peers rating you on Honestly? What’s your rank in Quora? Are you tracked by Traackr? The answers equate to a market harbinger that’s both alarming and telling…how much is your digital persona worth in today’s social economy. We’ll explore the nuances and the impact on brands and personal brands live on stage at SXSW. Join me, Ad.ly’s Sean Rad and Arnie Gullov-Singh…
The Year of Understanding Influence
2010 was the year where we revisited not only the definition of influence, but also deeply explored its meaning in today’s social economy. What represented an ongoing series of virtual global summits on the topic, influence was scrutinized as a way of better understanding its role in new media. It goes beyond academic study however. Influence permeated the realm of the masses and suddenly, we the people, were gifted with the opportunity to voice what moved us. In doing so,…
A Conversation About You, Social Currency and Social Capital
In February 2011, I have the privilege to speak at the lift conference in Geneva. But this isn’t about the conference as much as it is about an important subject that I’ve been asked to address. While this idea is nothing new to economists, theorists, futurists and other intellectuals around the world, my focus is on those who are unfamiliar with the role they play in an underground, but vital economy. I’m going to explore the undercurrent of social economics,…
Influencing the Influencer
The competition for attention is focused on social networks as brands vie for awareness and consideration. Establishing a presence in Facebook and Twitter is as necessary as it is trivial. In the great social land grab, many organizations are missing true opportunities to connect with the fifth P of the marketing mix, people. It’s less about communicating with those individuals who are already following you online and more about those who aren’t. To excel in social media, engagement has its…
The Most Influential Conversations on Twitter in 2009
What follows is the unabridged version of my current post on Mashable, “Twitter’s Most Influential Topics of 2009.” As we ring in the New Year and usher in twenty ten, let’s take a moment to reflect on the topics that defined the real-time stream in Twitter. Twitter recently published a Top 2009 Trends list which essentially symbolized a digital microcosm of culture and conversations throughout the year. In many cases, Twitter served as the “wire,” connecting us to stories and…
