15 Examples Of Social Media Platforms Using Lists To Enhance Their User Interface

My name is Elton Sa, this is my BuzzFeed Listicle that will explain the reasons why Lists correspond so well with Social Media Platforms to enhance their user interface. With the support of Liam Young's article "On lists and Networks", 15 examples of Social Media Platforms are used to exemplify why lists are important.

What is the purpose of Lists?

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Lists can be virtually seen from everywhere online, such as on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and so on. It helps the consumer "itemise, measure and rank (Young, 2013)" information so that it can be deciphered easily in order to understand it better.

Lists create efficiency.

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Majority of lists were initially created to help people better track things such as a grocery list or a goals list, whereas lists created by producers on Social Media are aimed to create efficiency, making information easier to consume as lists breaks it down.

How do Lists work?

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Lists breaks information down in an orderly fashion with the help of "other visual means like images, numbers, lines, dot points, columns to aid the consumer to see resonances between words, things, data and people that might otherwise escape their grasp (Young, 2013)".

What happens when there's too much information?

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Due to a drastic increase in quantity of data flows which can be seen on all social media platforms, Liam Young (2013) discovered that the explosion of lists took its course in expediting as a "mode of managing information overload" (Young, 2013).

You decide what's better

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Unlike an essay or a passage, consumers find it easier to consume information presented to them on a list as it's more straight forward, as opposed to the above Sample Essay which does not jump straight to the point.

Twitter - NBC News

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Given that Twitter has a 160 word limit per tweet, producers and consumers will need to be smart with their tweets. In light of the recent tragedy that took place in Las Vegas, NBC News' live coverage of the tragedy has been summarised in a list, which consumers will likely to read and pay more attention to.

Facebook

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Facebook has inbuilt features which adopted the concept of lists in order to enhance the experience and user interface for its consumers. In the image, an user is able to post a status to a list of networks of their choice.

Reddit

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Reddit's user interface is heavily based on the concept of lists with the additional feature of "up-voting" posts so that the most up-voted post appears on the top of the page. As the page is displayed in a list form, consumers can pick a topic from the list and browse it with ease, filtering out the less appealing topics.

eBay

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eBay uses a variety of lists as a categorisation tool to help consumers distinguish the types of products they are seeking. Upon selecting the type of product in the list, they are directed to a new webpage that will list all the relevant products offered by different merchants to enhance the consumer's shopping experience.

Instagram

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Instagram uses lists to help consumers keep up to date with the people they follow. The interface of Instagram is very well list-oriented where the consumer scrolls down their home page to a list of images posted by the people they are following.

Pinterest

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Pinterest, much alike to Instagram uses a list as their main interface. Consumers are able to browse on a DIY subject of their choice and depending on what image attracts their eye, they are able to easily navigate to the post they want to peruse.

Google Mail

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Google Mail heavily uses lists to help consumers organise emails that they're received in a very efficient manner, from the side list of inboxes, sent mail to the top tabs of different types of emails, Google Mail use lists to their advantage and creates a great user interface for its consumers.

Tumblr

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Tumblr which is a heavily used blogging platform, uses lists to their advantage much like Instagram, however the difference is that Tumblr's layouts are customisable. Consumers are able to repost images or quotes to their own blog, adding to their blog on the relevant posts.

ABC/Triple J Hottest 100

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Triple J hottest 100 is a list of all the popular music that has been voted by consumers ranked from 1 to 100. Annually, Australians are able to access the platform and cast votes on their favourite music tracks whilst listening to the countdown on radio.

BuzzFeed

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BuzzFeed uses lists to its full potential, allowing consumers to read articles in list form that would have otherwise a long passage. The user interface allows consumers to pick appealing titles and then click to read the article that are broken down in lists.

LinkedIn

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LinkedIn utilises lists well by allowing the consumer to read a list of news article relevant to the workforce. On a consumer's profile, they are able to list their skillsets, previous job experiences and more to appeal to their future employers. Users are also able to keep up to their with their connections by being able to view a list of their activities on their home page.

SoundCloud

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Soundcloud, a community based platform use lists to showcase music from various artists. Consumers are able to view artists' profile and find a list of all their creative uploads while being exposed to a list of similar artists on the side.

Google/Search Engines

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Google and other search engines allows users to search a topic and view a list of all the relevant sources that matches the keyword in the search. Consumers are able to find the most relevant source judging by the titles to explore the content of the source in order to use it.

Sina Weibo

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Sina Weibo is a popular Chinese micro-blogging website that allows consumers to browse a list of entertainment on the left hand side and at the same time, upload a list of posts to their user profile that may be personal to them, much like blogging.

WhatsApp

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WhatsApp is mobile app which allows consumers to message and call their friends using WIFI connection. The platform uses lists to help consumers keep track of their call logs, chat logs and contacts all on the one platform.

Conclusion

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This concludes my BuzzFeed Listicle on the reasons why lists are important and the 15 examples of Social Media Platforms that uses lists to their advantage to enhance their user interface. As you have read, lists are very important in the digital age where it creates a better experience for producers and consumers.