Under the new Klout rating system, I just went from a 49 to a 63. Apparently, this means that I should expect better customer service than other people because I am very fearsome and influential. Also, too, I can expect other perks.
• A marketing executive with 15 years of experience in the business lost out on a job because his Klout score was too low. His was 34. The job went to a candidate with a Klout score of 67.
• At a Las Vegas resort, hotel clerks checked the Klout scores of guests at check-in. Those with high Klout scores got their rooms upgraded. The special treatment paid off when the hotel jumped from 17th to 3rd place in number of Facebook Friends and has one of the highest Klout scores of any Las Vegas hotel.
• A software company checks the Klout scores of those who post complaints on Twitter or Facebook. Those with higher scores, one would imagine, get quicker treatment and responses.
• An online gift shopping site offers discounts scaled to shoppers’ Klout scores.
So, apparently, it’s cool to live in your parents’ basement and eat Cheetos in your pajamas all day long. You can be treated like you’re Frank Sinatra. This is weird and stupid.
