Lithium Reveals the Klout 50: Retail Edition

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 24, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Lithium Technologies today announced the Klout 50: Retail Edition, a ranking of the top 50 retailers in the United States with the most social influence. In time for the holidays, Lithium ranked the retailers that have the highest amount of social engagement with customers.  These retailers understand that 6 out of 7 customers are starting their shopping experience online¹.  They are the social innovators that weave social content into their larger digital strategies to create a layer of influence and trust with customers. 

Amazon ranks as the #1 retailer with the most social Klout, followed by Target and Walmart. Not only did Amazon take the #1 spot on the inaugural Klout 50 list (based on the Interbrand 2014 Best Global Brands report), but they are the only pure-play e-Commerce brand that made the retail edition. The Klout 50: Retail Edition is based on the NRF Top 100 Retailers Chart 2014 and corresponding Klout Scores. Other key findings include:

• The retailers that broke both the NRF list and Klout 50 top 10 include: Amazon, Target, Walmart and Walgreens, showcasing their powerhouse status in both revenue and social media
• The biggest jumps are: Dell as #5 on the Klout list, but #91 on the NRF list and Neiman Marcus as #9 on the Klout list, but #86 on the NRF list, highlighting the value they put towards their social strategies

The common theme with the Klout 50 retailers is that they are using social in every part of the customer journey to help with purchasing decisions. These brands recognize that the customer journey includes more than the standard social platforms and they leverage other tools such as branded content, owned communities and influencer campaigns. In a study conducted by Millward Brown, brands that have online communities actually drove 12 times as much traffic (than all social channels combined) and twice as many online conversions (to sales) than brands that relied on other social channels such as Facebook².

"It's time for retailers to wake up. Customers expect instant customer service, personalized offers and perks no matter where they are. Social provides the perfect platform to deliver on these customer expectations. It's a human touch at scale," said Katy Keim, CMO of Lithium Technologies. "Congrats to the Klout 50 retailers that are getting it right and those who did not make the list should visit our Holiday Readiness Checklist."

The brands on the Klout 50: Retail Edition are socially-savvy retailers that use social platforms to provide value to customers; everything from ratings and reviews, product galleries to product news and customer service support.  They understand that their customers are part of larger communities across the social media landscape. They use those tools to have authentic two-way conversations, which drives brand preference and loyalty. 

The most socially engaged and influential retailers are:

Methodology:
The Klout 50: Retail Edition is based on the NRF Top 100 Retailers Chart 2014 and corresponding Klout Scores. Brands not registered for Klout are not included. Grocery and restaurants (QSR) outlets were removed. Klout Scores are compiled using proprietary algorithms, determined by more than 400 signals from eight different networks, including Facebook, Twitter and Google+ as well as real world data from Wikipedia.

About Lithium Technologies
Lithium's software helps companies reinvent how they connect with their customers. Lithium works with more than 300 of the world's best brands— including Best Buy, Indosat, Sephora, Skype and Telstra — to respond on social networks and to build trusted content on a community they own. The 100% SaaS-based Lithium Social Customer Experience™ platform enables brands to build and engage vibrant customer communities to drive sales, reduce service costs, accelerate innovation and grow brand advocacy. For more information, visit lithium.com, or connect with us on Twitter, Facebook and our own community. Lithium is privately held with corporate headquarters in San Francisco and offices across Europe, Asia and Australia. 

The Lithium® logo is a registered Service Mark of Lithium Technologies. All trademarks and product names are the property of their respective owners.

1.  NRF Retail Insight Report: Spotlight on Modern Retail (October 2013)
2.  Lithium-Millward Brown Digital Study (2014)

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SOURCE Lithium Technologies

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