Technology Tuesday - Using Trello to Organize Anything
If you are looking for a simple to use tool that can help organize almost any information across all of your different devices, then Trello may be for you. This web-based application is highly versatile and works well on every device. Since it is web-based, it does not matter whether you are a Mac or PC user. There are native apps for iOS and Android devices. It accepts a wide variety of data and has plenty of customizations available as well.Trello organizes your information on what they call ‘cards’ within ‘boards’ for each subject. It is an excellent way to take a top-level subject with several sub-topics that you want to fill in information about. Each card allows for additional information to be added, plus it is set up for easy to use collaboration.Trello is a free application with options available for bigger uses and more powerful features through paid subscriptions. Everything I will cover in this article uses only the free options. You can find out more at trello.com. Let’s take a look at some of the features of this very useful tool.
How I use Trello
I utilize Trello for many different things in different ways. One of the most useful things I do within Trello is to manage the blog posts for Effective Retail Leader. Within Trello I can keep a list of potential ideas for future articles, move them to the ‘draft’ stage when I begin working on them, and continue to move the card every time it progresses through the stages of completion. Ultimately it ends up in the ‘posted’ string of cards that can be referenced back to if I need to see when something was posted.Trello also offers what they call ‘Power Ups’ which are add-ons that enhance your boards. For free accounts, you can use one ‘power up’ for your board. For my Blog Post Schedule board, I use the calendar power up to be able to see when my articles are scheduled to post on the site. These can be shared with other people so they can see the same things you are looking at. My wife, who does most of the editing for my articles, can then see the same schedule I can for when articles will be posted.
Managing content, dates, labels
Within each Trello card, additional magic can happen. You can keep all of the necessary information in one place. You can enter a description of the card itself to provide the details behind the title that is always visible on your board. You can also place attachments - pictures, documents, or links within the card to easily reference back to later. I use this for keeping track of articles I want to share on social media sites. I can write my notes about the article, place the link for the actual article, and any pictures that may need to accompany them.Dates can be assigned to any card to help you keep track of tasks that need to be completed or when you want to follow up on the information. I use the dates for when I will be publishing something, for example on my website or when I want to share a particular article via social media. It is a great way to keep track of the information and allows you to use the calendar power-up I mentioned above effectively.
Collaborating
Trello is an excellent collaboration tool as well. It is easy to share your boards with other people. Since it is a web-based tool, anyone can use it regardless of their device or operating system. I have used the ability to collaborate in the past with my leadership partners. My HR Director and I used Trello to organize a training program we had with our High Potential Leaders. We built a curriculum framework within Trello and then could add the pieces in for each month as we went along. We had checklists within certain cards for what we needed to gather for the particular task. We made comments for each other to see what had been updated. Additionally, we attached links, documents, and even PowerPoint slides to the card so we had all of the information grouped together. It made it incredibly easy to share information and work together even though we were hundreds of miles apart. It also allowed us to use this as a storage device to be used for future sessions. Adding comments is as simple as typing into the comments box and clicking ‘save’. It captures the person, time, and date of the comment. It can even notify you when comments are made if you so choose.
Advanced uses and automation
Trello offers some very powerful automation options. If you have a need for that type of workflow, Trello will not disappoint. I do not use many of these features myself, but I have completed at least one automated workflow by using the If This Then That (IFTTT) application in conjunction with Trello. When I identify articles I want to be able to share with readers later I have set up a workflow from Instapaper to Trello. When I archive the article in Instapaper it automatically triggers the action to send a copy of that article to a Trello board to be used for a post to a social media site, such as linked in. I could take it a step further and actually have it post directly to LinkedIn, Twitter, or Instagram. It is a nice time saver and makes working from mobile devices like a phone or iPad that much easier.Power UpsTrello describes Power-Ups as, “Turn your Trello boards into living apps.” And goes further to describe them as, “Power-ups help teams meet their unique business needs through adaptable features and integrations.” Power Ups are not just for teams, anyone can use them. There are dozens of different power-up options that can select from the Trello.com website or from within the application. You can even create your own if you so choose.
As you can see Trello has numerous uses. I know have only scratched the surface for what Trello can do. I have found that due to its versatility that I keep coming back to it for different projects. I have more than a dozen different boards that I use for keeping projects and information organized.How could you put Trello to work for your organizational needs? Share your experiences in comments.