Lithium Debuts Klout 50 'Social Influence' Ranking

US-based social media solutions firm Lithium Technologies has introduced a ranking of the 50 global brands with the most social media influence and engagement.

Lithium provides 'social customer relationship management' (SCRM) solutions, to enable clients to create and manage their own social media customer networks, while its Lithium Insights analytics tool measures and benchmarks the 'health' of online communities.

Klout, which Lithium acquired earlier this year, analyses the influence of individuals and the prevalence of topics around the web, using measurements of behavior, complex ranking algorithms and semantic analysis of content. The new Klout 50 ranking aims to reveal a 'social elite' of brands who are most active on social media platforms and whose audiences share and interact with their digital content. The ranking draws on the annual Interbrand Best Global Brands report, looking at Klout Scores for the companies in it.

In the first ranking, Amazon takes the number one spot, followed by Microsoft and MTV. Lithium CMO Katy Keim (pictured) comments: 'The Klout 50 salutes those brands that know social media is part of their consumer's everyday life and for effectively connecting and sharing experiences with them, However, this is also a wakeup call for the brands that are not on the list to understand that without social they lose.'

Web site: www.lithium.com .