As a business, Twitter is probably one of your most important tools to use to track blogs, trends, news, or influencers in your niche.

Unfortunately, as great as the platform may be, following hundreds or thousands of people and brands comes with a price: a rapidly changing timeline.

Does it mean that you should follow fewer accounts? Not at all! Instead, take advantage of Lists.

Interested in creative ways to leverage one of Twitter’s most powerful features? Read on for these five tips you’ll want to “favorite.”

But first…what are Lists?

Lists allow you to organize accounts into specific categories or topics. You can create your own or subscribe to other users’.

Further, each List has a dedicated link and stream. For example: https://twitter.com/cendrinemedia/lists/social-media-blog-ger-s

To create a List, locate the Lists page in your Twitter account and click “Create new list”. Enter the name of your list (up to 25 characters) and a short description (100 characters maximum), and decide if you want the List to be private or public.

To add users or businesses to your Lists, click the wheel icon next to the “Follow” button on profiles. Then, select “Add or remove from list” and check the Lists that apply.

For more information on Lists, visit the Twitter Help Center.

But how can you creatively harness the power of List?

1. Acknowledging Your Audience

Your business is nothing without an audience. You may have the greatest service or product in the world, but if no one supports it, you will not last on social media.

Never underestimate the power of gratitude.

Thanking people for shares and comments is important. However, no one enjoys seeing their timeline overtaken by a long series of repetitive Tweets. They have no value and will lead to massive unfollowing.

The best way to avoid such a situation is to create a Thank You List. You can acknowledge your supporters without running the risk of alienating others.

By the same token, if you sell a product to other businesses, for example, why not allow your users, clients, and fans to connect via a Community List? It’s a great way to cement your relationship with them.

Remember, though, that Lists are not substitutes for real conversations. Go beyond them and reach out to at least five or ten of your supporters once or twice a week. Personalizing connections will always go a long way. 

2. Observing Competition

You are not the only B2B business in your field to have a Twitter account. In fact, there are probably thousands of them. Use that to your advantage.

Create a competitor List to monitor what these companies and individuals are doing. What content do they share and how do their followers engage with it?

Even though your audience may be slightly different from theirs, this List will give you key insights into the way those brands work and help their clients. It may even inspire you to try different things with yours.

Remember that Lists can be private. So, monitoring the competition can be done without anyone knowing about it.

3. Recommending Useful Resources and Accounts

 As a marketer or agency, you may be tempted to use Twitter to blast out messages about your products or services. Unfortunately, it is not the way things work.

You are on Twitter to serve your audience, first and foremost. You want to save them time by handpicking useful and relevant information that they can use when implementing their own strategies. That is how you build trust and increase awareness of your own brand.

Resource Lists are a fantastic way to help serve your Twitter audience. Here are some ideas: news/trends in your niche, best Twitter chat/conference handles, productivity tools, favorite influencers and thought-leaders.

4. Keeping an Eye on Past, Current, and Potential Clients

Monitoring what your clients are doing should be a priority for any business.

That kind of List will allow you to advise and serve clients better. You can also use that information to start relevant conversations with them. Plus, it’s nice for them to know that you are paying attention.

Client lists should be kept private.

5. Staying in Touch With the Media

 One of the best ways to increase awareness of your company is to have relevant and reputable blogs and newspapers write about you.

Many bloggers, journalists, and reporters are on Twitter. Add them to a Media List to see what piques their interest and the kind of stories they write. Reach out to them when something timely occurs if it’s relevant to your brand.

Do not pitch members of the media right away. First, get familiar with their style. Read their articles, leave comments, and interact with them on Twitter. They will be much more responsive if your request is a natural part of the conversation.

Remember, though, journalists get a lot of pitches via social media so a follow-up phone call is highly recommended.

We want to hear from you! How do you use Twitter Lists in your business?

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