Twitter

Using Twitter Lists to Categorize and Engage Your Audience

May 27, 2022
twitter lists

How to Use Twitter Lists Effectively

Twitter lists are a way to organize tweets and accounts to improve your marketing strategy and stay productive. Like other social networks, once you use Twitter more and more, you might feel like your feed feels cluttered and less relevant. The sheer number of tweets from your followers might become overwhelming and unappealing. Fortunately, you can organize and declutter using Twitter lists.

What Are Twitter Lists?

Twitter users have the option to organize Twitter accounts, regardless of if you follow them or not. One common application of Twitter lists is to organize all the news sources you normally digest, unfollowing them all and that way, you can get all your news from the list instead. This makes your normal Twitter feed more ‘free’, not bogged down by the constant updates from news publications.

Here’s a few key details to keep in mind when building Twitter lists:

  • You can have public or private lists.
  • Every user can create 1,000 lists.
  • Each list can have up to 5,000 accounts on it.

Essentially, a Twitter list is a collection of Twitter accounts that you have put together because of a similarity you find useful. For example, the accounts may all be experts in a certain field, or they are people you want to engage with more regularly.

Setting Up Twitter Lists 

Even beginners on Twitter can set up Twitter lists with relative ease. Doing so correctly should help you make the most out of them.

Here is a brief tutorial on how to set up your Twitter lists for more effective use:

Once you’ve logged onto Twitter, click on “Lists”—you should be able to find this button on the left-hand side (navigation bar) when using the desktop version of Twitter. To create a new list, click on the button indicated in the image above.

You can now include details regarding your list such as name, description, and photo. Using the checkbox, set the list as public or private (more on that later). You can now add the Twitter handlebars of accounts you’d like to include in the list. Once you’ve added them all, click done and your Twitter list is set up.  

  • Private Twitter lists will only be visible to you. This also means accounts added to the list won’t be notified that they are on it. Use this type for your marketing analytics. 
  • Public Twitter lists can be viewed (and followed) by your audience. Any accounts you add to the list will know they are on it. Use this type to engage your audience, prospective advocates, and more.

Why You Should Use Twitter Lists

The proper use of Twitter lists comes with many benefits to your marketing plan, allowing your business to thrive on the platform. You can use them to improve your social listening, build relationships, and increase engagement around your brand. 

Your social listening strategy refers to a method of analyzing trends in your industry by hearing what potential consumers have to say. This analysis is then taken into consideration when making marketing decisions. 

For example, you can research the pain points of your target market and answer them in your website content writing. Twitter lists allow you to effectively:

  • analyze your competitors
  • engage with your target market
  • draw inspiration from others in your field
  • build relationships with influencers, authority figures in your industry, and consumers

How To Use Twitter Lists

Now that you know the benefits of using a Twitter list, the next step is to curate the most practical and useful lists for your marketing strategy. Use each type of list to serve a different purpose and increase your productivity. You should be able to focus your analytics on a segment of your Twitter followers/accounts you follow. In turn, this allows you to simplify your analysis and make better marketing decisions.

Favorites Lists 

If there are any accounts that you prefer to follow more closely, add them to a “Favorites” list. If you’ve been on Twitter for a while, there are bound to be some accounts that you actively look for when browsing. 

Favorites Twitter lists allow you to create a second feed that is occupied solely by those that matter the most to you. Typically, this list would be private and it can act as a second feed. Once you set it up, follow as many accounts as you like—your favorites will all be in one place.

Must-Follow Accounts

As part of your branding strategy, you would typically want to build authority in your industry. That doesn’t mean you’re the only expert. Your audience will appreciate it if you link them to other accounts that you believe are excellent resources.

Curate a Twitter list of must-follow accounts for your audience to find helpful information that you may not be able to provide. For example, if you are in the real estate business, you might add accounts that share content about architecture.

Niche Thought Leaders

In every industry, some brands seem to always be one step ahead. Make a collection of the most innovative people and organizations in your industry under a ‘Thought Leaders’ Twitter list. 

This feed will help you keep up with the latest innovations in your niche. Thought leaders can also inspire you to get creative. 

Create A Staff Directory

Use Twitter as a way to communicate with your staff members and keep them engaged with relevant content. Add all your team members to a Twitter list and you can find them in one spot.

 A staff directory Twitter list will help your team members share relevant content back and forth. You can also use this list as a place to make announcements, and boost morale to motivate your team. 

Competitors List

Analyzing your rivals is an important part of any thorough marketing research. A Twitter list of your competitors allows you to closely follow their branding strategy and their position in the industry. 

Listening to what people have to say about others in your industry helps you understand your target market better. You can learn from your competitors’ mistakes and draw inspiration from their successes. 

Key Takeaways

Twitter lists are an exceptional tool to optimize your marketing strategy and make more productive use of your time. Use them to:

  • Stay ahead of the competition.
  • Engage your audience through curated lists of useful resources.
  • Draw inspiration from leaders in the industry.
  • Make more productive and efficient use of your time on Twitter.

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