When I wrote about Klout, you could connect several social profiles and receive a score from zero to one hundred. Mine was 58 at the time. Klout also grouped users into types and attached topics to their supposed influence. It was tempting to read this as an objective measure of online reach.
What did it measure?
The score responded to visible signals such as interactions and other users' networks. That might say something about distribution on a platform, but far less about the quality of someone's ideas. My original article even suggested that a Klout score could help judge whether a prospective business partner was trustworthy. That conclusion went too far. A number based on social activity cannot establish character, expertise or reliability.
Klout illustrates a wider trap: once a complex quality becomes a single rank, differences between people look clearer than they are. For a collaboration, look instead at relevant work, references and a conversation. Reach may matter, but it is only one question.
A dated look back
Klout announced that its website and score would close in May 2018. The old score is no longer a tool you can use. The historical example remains useful because similar metrics still invite quick conclusions. Ask what data supports a metric and what decision you intend to make with it.