Trello – a flexible visual project & task management tool

I’m somewhat of a productivity system junkie – I’ve just about tried them all, with varying degrees of success. Only a couple of them have made it as a part of my regular workflow and Trello is one of them.

Trello is a visual project & task management collaboration tool that arranges projects into Boards which are comprised of lists and cards organized in vertical columns. In some ways, Trello resembles a bulletin board with cards laid out in vertical columns. I have found this an excellent tool for creating a blog publishing schedule, project to-do lists, or an editorial calendar.

First Come The Boards

We can think of Boards as projects. For instance, we might have a board entitled “Posting Schedule” or “Blog Ideas”. I’m not sure how many boards you are allowed but I’ve yet to reach any sort of limit.

To create a new board, click the + (plus) symbol on the top right corner of the page and then click New Board. Then, type in the name for your board and click Create. We are now ready to begin adding lists.

Trello boards image

Then Come Lists

A list is a vertical arrangement of cards that display related tasks. In the example below, I have a separate list for for each week. We could also create separate lists for each subproject, with the cards representing the individual tasks in that subproject. If you are using a Getting Things Done methodology, you might title your lists such things as Today, Next, Later, Waiting On and Someday.

Trello lists image

To add a new list to a board, click the Add a List box, type a name for the list and then click Save. Once we’ve created our list, clicking the small icon on the top right corner of the list allows us to perform such tasks as moving a list, copying a list, archiving a list, and adding a card to the list.

Adding Cards to Lists

We’ve created our list. Now it’s time to populate the list with cards. Think of cards as the tasks that need to be performed for a specific subproject. Many people use their cards to visually display progress made a project. For instance, we might create a list called In Progress and Done. If we are currently working on a task (a card), we would drag it to the In Progress list. When we’ve completed the task, we drag it to the Done list. I love the flexibility of being able to drag around my cards from one list to another.

Trello cards image

To add a new card to a list, click the Add a Card box on the bottom of the list, type in a description of the task and then click Add.

Exploring the Back of the Card

Once we have created a new card, we can access a host of options by clicking directly on the card, which displays the back of the card. From here, we can accomplish such things as assigning people to the task, adding a label to a task, adding a checklist, setting a due date, adding file or image attachments, and more. Additionally, the back of the cards displays all activity related to that specific card, allowing you to see who accessed it and what they did.

Trello back of card image

Public or Private

Trello can be used collaboratively with a team or as a solo task management system. Additionally, you can share publicly any boards that you create with no extra or hidden charges.

Cost

Trello follows a freemium model so is no cost to use Trello for basic usage. However, if you wish to support Trello or obtain extra functionality such as increased file size for attachments (up to 250 mb), visual stickers, premium backgrounds and emoji chacters, you can upgrade to Trello Gold for $5 a month or $45 per year. If you wish to purchase Trello for your company or team, the Business Class upgrade costs the same as Trello Gold: $5 a month per user or $45 per year.

Platform

You can access Trello online via your Web browser. They also offer an iPhone app and an iPad app.

You can check out Trello HERE. It just might change the way that you look at project management.

Roger Talks Tech

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