This has been quite a year for Klout. Their suite of measurements, specifically their “Klout score,” has risen to become a recognized standard in the realm of user-generated content and social communications. They’ve generated numerous articles on how corporations and industries are considering Klout to award perks, recognize influencers, and even possibly screen for job applicants. Klout has become, in essence, a “credit score” for the social space. Of course, detractors have had their say, and I’ve written my own article on why Klout’s metrics need to be used within their proper context.

I realize Klout is nascent, but the fact that they’ve gained the clout (pun intended) they have today speaks volumes for the need for solid, reliable metrics in social media. With each announcement Klout releases, I admit I find myself craving more. So, in the spirit of the holidays, I’ve cobbled together a “wish list” of features I’ve love to see from the good folks at Klout in 2011.

More Historical Data

Right now, Klout’s various charts show measurements up to 30 days in the past. As an avid student of analytics, the ability to delve further into the past and download that data for further analysis would be valuable for tracking trends and correlating against other communications and campaigns I work on.

I really enjoy the flexibility offered by Google Analytics, where you can show comparisons between two spans of time, send yourself automated reports in various formats, and slice the data in any number of ways. If Klout released a similar suite of data tools, they would make me, and I’m sure many other analytics geeks out there, very, very happy.

Comparison of Metrics

Klout provides a healthy array of charts that show trends and measurements of several supporting metrics, not just the Klout score itself. It would be great to see overlays of various metrics, such as my inbound/outbound message ratio laid atop my amplification score, to see how the various data points interact with and affect each other.

I realize this could stray into “correlation does not equal causation” territory, but we’re not talking “pirates vs. global warming” here. I don’t see the various data points being that off target to create egregiously false assumptions. That is, of course, provided people continue to do their homework.

Data Segmented by Channel

Originally, Klout was focused specifically on Twitter. Starting in October 2010, however, metrics from personal Facebook pages were added to the mix, and a beta for gathering LinkedIn data is in the works. If you had tied your Klout profile to Facebook, historical data was adjusted as of October 21, 2010, which resulted in often dramatic changes to your overall score.

A sound tenet of communications strategy is matching your message to the medium. It may not be effective or possible to broadcast, engage, or interact the same on Twitter as Facebook or LinkedIn. Therefore, I would expect overall influence to differ between channels.

While an overall Klout score (and its supporting metrics) is useful as a broad indicator, it would be immensely helpful to segment the data by channel so I can give more thought and consideration to how I communicate on that channel.

Real-time “Influenced By/Influencer Of” Updates

Klout offers a simple chart of whom you influence and who influences you. Up to five of each is shown in your profile. Currently, this “rogue’s gallery of influence” isn’t updated with any frequency; my set has been the same for many months, and others in my network have reported the same situation. Most the accounts shown in this chart are pretty obvious, but it remains a good insight into the cornerstones of your network. I’d love to see more “drift” here.

Transparent Data on Total Number of Profiles Indexed

Klout doesn’t automatically connect to every single Twitter or personal Facebook profile; in most cases, you need to create a profile to share your data and acquire a score. Why is this important? If you connect your Twitter account to Klout, your score is relative to all other Twitter accounts captured in Klout’s database, not every Twitter account in existence.

As with any study or poll, it’s necessary to know the total size of the data set in order to establish weights or bias on the resulting statistics. Currently, Klout doesn’t share the precise number of accounts they index. I’d like to see more specificity and transparency here.

I feel this is important for measuring and reporting on success in the social web. While I’m sure a healthy amount of influencer heavyweights are already ensconced in Klout’s data sets, knowing the total number of indexed profiles will help put the scores into more accurate and meaningful context.

Hub-and-Spoke Influence Diagram

This is more of a “pie in the sky” request, but it would be sweet to see a hub-and-spoke diagram of influencers. The current “influenced by/influencer of” chart allows you to click on a specific account to jump to their Klout profile, wherein you can see who influences them and who they influence in turn. I’d love to browse through a Flash- or AJAX-based hub-and-spoke diagram that could show me dynamically who connects to whom in the influence realm.

The Obvious Conclusion

The obvious conclusion about the features in this wish list is that Klout could set up a “freemium” model: continue to offer the current suite of metrics and charts at no cost, and then offer an extended array of features to monthly paying subscribers. Hootsuite did much the same recently with their social services. Such a model would allow Klout to continue to add to its user base and secure a source of revenue from dedicated users.