The Must Have Project Management Tool – Trello

Note: I’m not affiliated with Trello in any way. I’m writing this as an avid product fan.

How many of you feel that your project management flow can be improved? You might be using something decent right now, but it just feels that your tasks can be broken down easier. Maybe the app you use isn’t that intuitive or maybe it’s a bit too clunky. Whatever it is, you aren’t satisfied and you want a project management system that meets your needs.

Enter Trello.

Trello is a project management tool by Fog Creek Software. The interface is both robust and intuitive – anyone can pick it up quickly and start to organize their tasks in a smart way. Personally, it took me 30 minutes to get my workflow set up (and I’m a slow guy :). Whether you’re breaking down tasks for a specific client, working on your sales pipeline, training new hires, working on business development, or planning out your vacation (yes, you can do that too), Trello gets the job done. Simple. intuitive. robust. No extra crap. And guess what? It’s free.

Overview

Without going too far in depth, here’s a basic overview of the features.

1. Boards

Boards help you organize different projects – this can be from sales to client deliverables to party planning. Sky’s the limit.

Example:

2. Lists

Lists allow you to break down items on your board into more segments. For example, let’s say you’ve created a ‘SEO Client Deliverables’ board for Client A. Examples of different lists might include:

• Deliverables – Items in this list will include promised deliverables to clients, such as link building, infographics, content, and reporting.
• In Progress – What you or members of your team are currently working on.
• Delivered – Promised deliverables that have been completed.
• Waiting for Client – Sometimes a client might need to provide you with important information in order to complete a deliverable. Example: Data for an infographic
• Ideas – Everyone comes up with great ideas that might be slam dunks for their clients. Put your ideas in this list to refer back to them later.

Example:

3. Cards

Cards are tasks that are placed into lists. For example, the 5 bullet points in the ‘Client Deliverables’ board right above would be example of cards. You can embed videos, links, checklists, colored labels, tags, likes, and more into each card. You can also move cards across different lists by simply clicking and dragging each card.

Example:

1. Labels – Choose from 6 different colors to label each card. Example: You can use red to label urgent items.
2. Members – Add specific members to each card. Example: Add various people from your team to brainstorm infographic ideas.
3. Attachments – Add relevant items to each card. Example: Add reports, content, or PDFs to cards.
4. Actions – How cool is this? You can upvote items like Facebook, add checklists, assign due dates, add tags, move the card somewhere else, or archive the card. Example: People can vote on an early prototype to see if it’s acceptable.
5. Header – This includes the title, due date, number of check list items, and tags.
6. Checklist – This is the checklist I created for a future workout. Once you check off items, they’ll be striked out.
7. Activity – Think of this as your Facebook or Twitter newsfeed. You can also embed Youtube videos in here!

Use Trello for other processes – like sales!

Sure, there might be other tools that do a better job, but for a free tool, Trello does a decent job of managing the sales process. A bonus is having all your other boards in one spot so you don’t have to bounce between different applications.

• Interest – If a client responds to an e-mail or fills out a lead form, you put them in here.
• Call Scheduled – Cool! The client wants to talk – plug them in here and set your call date.
• Waiting on Prospect – Perhaps you need to wait for approval to get the deal done. That’s cool – put them here and set a follow up date.
• Proposal Sent – Great, you’ve sent the proposal. Now set up a follow up date.
• Deals Won – Deals that you’ve won for the month can be placed here and then archived.

Conclusion

Trello is an intuitive management tool that can be used for projects of all sorts. It really makes you wonder how no one came up with something this simple before. And the scary thing is Trello is going to get even better as time goes by. There’s also an iPhone app (Android is in the works). And as of this writing, it’s all free so go out and try it!