Usually I find Klout perks quite lame, especially for those of us not based in the US. My highlight so far had been a ‘digital lottery ticket to play and share with friends’. But I have to admit that I did get quite excited when I read that my social media influence could be exchanged for free beer (well, for access to American Airlines’ business class lounge, including free wi-fi and free beer).  The airline is now offering those people with a Klout score of 55 or above a one-day pass to their fancy Admirals Club in 40 different airports. Perks also include snacks, showers to ‘unwind and relax’ and more importantly, the feel-good factor of climbing up the ladder of influence.

One can argue how accurate Klout is and if it means anything at all. There was an interesting article on Wired a while ago about Calvin Lee, a graphic designer from L.A, who, in order to keep his score up would tweet up to 45 times a day, to the extreme of worrying about his Klout score going down while on holiday. Lee’s current Klout score is 73 and yes, he has already claimed his AA lounge perk – instagraming it on the way. If we look at Lee’s Klout score and compare it with, let’s say, Warren Buffet’s, 61, does that mean Lee is more influential than Mr. Buffet? Read more on Under the Influence…