Using Lists to Organize Facebook and Twitter

As a reader of Black Web 2.0, you are probably very active on social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter.  As your use of these sites grows, the number of people you are connected to also tends to increase.  Eventually, you can find yourself overwhelmed by the volume of information being thrown at you by these sites.  One way to effectively manage this volume is through the use of lists.

Understanding Lists

Facebook and Twitter both use lists, and a list is simply a way to separate your Facebook friends or your Twitter followers into groups.  So, you can create groups based on stages of life like middle school, high school, college, or work.  You can also create groups based on occupation like doctors, lawyers, plumbers, etc.  Pick a classification system that works for you.

Creating Lists

To create a list on Facebook, follow these steps:

1. Select the Account menu in the upper right hand corner, and then select “Edit Friends”.  You’ll be taken to a screen that displays all of your Facebook friends.
2. You’ll see a button at the top of the screen called “Create New List”.  Press that button and a screen will pop up called “Create New List”.
3. There will be a text box in the upper left hand corner of this screen where you can type the name of your list.  Type whatever name you want for the list, and then select members of the list from the names and pictures in the middle of the screen.
4. Once you are finished, press the “Create List” button, and you’re done!

Unlike Twitter, Facebook lists are always private, meaning only you can see them.

To create a list on Twitter, follow these steps:

1. Click the “New list” link on the right side of the of your Twitter home page. A screen will pop up called “Create a new list”.
2. Type your desired name in the “List name” box at the top, a description, and whether the list is Public (anyone can see it) or Private (only you can see it).  Click the “Create list” button at the bottom, and your list has been created.

Unlike Facebook, you can’t add users to the list until after you create it.  To add a Twitter user to the list, navigate to their Twitter profile page, click the “Lists” button at the top, and then select the lists you want for that user.

Managing Lists

You manage Facebook and Twitter lists the same way that you create them.  You can add, delete, or modify lists in Facebook by going to the “Edit Friends” section under the Account menu.  The same thing can be done on Twitter by clicking on the “Lists” link on the right side of your Twitter homepage.  You’ll be taken to a page where you’ll find lists that follow you (i.e., created by other users) and the lists that you follow (i.e., created by you).  However, you’ll still need to go to an individual person’s Twitter profile page to add, remove, or change their list memberships.

The Benefits of Lists

Facebook and Twitter lists are effective ways of narrowing the flow of information from your fellow social media users.  Both services allow you to click on a list and only see updates from members of that group.  Also, most Facebook and Twitter smartphone apps provide the same ability to filter views based on lists.  By using lists, you can accept friend requests from a number of people while still focusing on content from the people you really want to follow.

About the Author
Anjuan Simmons is an emerging technology consultant and freelance technology consultant currently working as a Director at Adverlyze, an online marketing strategy company. Anjuan has previously worked for Accenture and Deloitte. He has an undergraduate degree in electrical engineering from the University of Texas at Austin and an MBA from Texas A&M University. He can be found on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/anjuan and on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/anjuan.
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