Trello Board Automation
Automate Trello board management, card workflows, power-ups, and team collaboration
Moving Trello cards between lists, updating due dates, and assigning members manually wastes project management time that should go to actual coordination. This playbook automates Trello board management — card workflows, status transitions, due date reminders, and team collaboration rules.
Who it's for: project managers automating card movement and status update workflows in Trello, product owners building automated sprint board management with Trello automations, team leads creating notification rules for overdue cards and blocked tasks, operations managers building intake workflows that auto-create and route Trello cards, freelancers automating client project tracking across multiple Trello boards
Example
"Automate our development board so cards move through stages automatically" → Trello automation pipeline: rule-based card movement when checklists complete or labels change, automatic due date assignment based on card type and priority, overdue card notification to assigned members and team leads, weekly board health report showing cards by status and aging, and intake automation creating cards from form submissions or emails
New here? 3-minute setup guide → | Already set up? Copy the template below.
# Trello Automation
Comprehensive workflow for automating Trello board management and kanban workflows.
## Core Concepts
### Board Structure
```
TRELLO BOARD ANATOMY:
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ 📋 Project Board │
├───────────┬───────────┬───────────┬───────────┬────────┤
│ Backlog │ To Do │ Doing │ Review │ Done │
├───────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┼────────┤
│ ┌───────┐ │ ┌───────┐ │ ┌───────┐ │ ┌───────┐ │ │
│ │Card 1 │ │ │Card 3 │ │ │Card 5 │ │ │Card 7 │ │ │
│ │Labels │ │ │@Mike │ │ │@Sarah │ │ │@Lisa │ │ │
│ │Due │ │ │Due:3d │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │
│ └───────┘ │ └───────┘ │ └───────┘ │ └───────┘ │ │
│ ┌───────┐ │ ┌───────┐ │ ┌───────┐ │ │ │
│ │Card 2 │ │ │Card 4 │ │ │Card 6 │ │ │ │
│ └───────┘ │ └───────┘ │ └───────┘ │ │ │
└───────────┴───────────┴───────────┴───────────┴────────┘
```
### Card Components
```yaml
card_structure:
title: "{{task_name}}"
description: "{{detailed_description}}"
metadata:
labels:
- name: "Bug"
color: red
- name: "Feature"
color: green
- name: "Urgent"
color: orange
members: ["@member1", "@member2"]
due_date: "2024-01-20"
start_date: "2024-01-15"
attachments:
- type: file
url: "{{attachment_url}}"
- type: link
url: "{{external_link}}"
checklists:
- name: "Acceptance Criteria"
items:
- "Requirement 1"
- "Requirement 2"
- "Requirement 3"
custom_fields:
story_points: 5
sprint: "Sprint 15"
```
## Butler Automation
### Automation Rules
```yaml
butler_rules:
- name: auto_assign_on_move
trigger:
type: card_moved_to_list
list: "Doing"
action:
- join_card
- set_due_date: "+3 days"
- add_label: "In Progress"
- name: due_date_reminder
trigger:
type: due_date_approaching
days: 1
action:
- post_comment: "@card Reminder: Due tomorrow!"
- move_to_list: "Urgent"
- name: completion_cleanup
trigger:
type: card_moved_to_list
list: "Done"
action:
- mark_due_complete
- remove_all_members
- add_label: "Completed"
- name: scheduled_archive
trigger:
type: schedule
frequency: weekly
day: sunday
action:
- archive_cards_in_list: "Done"
- older_than: 7_days
```
### Button Commands
```yaml
card_buttons:
- name: "Start Working"
actions:
- move_to_list: "Doing"
- join_card
- set_due_date: "+3 days"
- remove_label: "Backlog"
- add_label: "In Progress"
- name: "Submit for Review"
actions:
- move_to_list: "Review"
- add_checklist:
name: "Review Checklist"
items:
- "Code reviewed"
- "Tests passing"
- "Documentation updated"
- mention: "@reviewer"
- name: "Mark Complete"
actions:
- check_all_items
- move_to_list: "Done"
- mark_due_complete
- post_comment: "✅ Completed!"
```
## Board Templates
### Sprint Board
```yaml
sprint_board_template:
name: "Sprint {{number}}"
lists:
- name: "Sprint Backlog"
position: 1
- name: "To Do"
position: 2
- name: "In Progress"
position: 3
wip_limit: 5
- name: "Code Review"
position: 4
wip_limit: 3
- name: "Testing"
position: 5
- name: "Done"
position: 6
labels:
- name: "Bug"
color: red
- name: "Feature"
color: green
- name: "Tech Debt"
color: yellow
- name: "Blocked"
color: purple
custom_fields:
- name: "Story Points"
type: number
- name: "Priority"
type: dropdown
options: ["High", "Medium", "Low"]
```
### Content Calendar
```yaml
content_calendar_template:
name: "Content Calendar - {{month}}"
lists:
- name: "Ideas"
- name: "Planning"
- name: "Writing"
- name: "Editing"
- name: "Scheduled"
- name: "Published"
labels:
- name: "Blog"
color: blue
- name: "Social"
color: pink
- name: "Video"
color: purple
- name: "Newsletter"
color: green
card_template:
name: "{{content_title}}"
description: |
**Topic:** {{topic}}
**Target Audience:** {{audience}}
**Keywords:** {{keywords}}
**Publish Date:** {{date}}
checklists:
- name: "Content Workflow"
items:
- "Research complete"
- "Outline approved"
- "First draft"
- "Edit pass"
- "Graphics ready"
- "SEO optimized"
- "Scheduled"
```
## Workflow Automation
### Card Movement Rules
```yaml
workflow_rules:
to_do:
entry_actions:
- require_due_date
- require_labels
exit_requirements:
- has_assignee
in_progress:
entry_actions:
- start_timer
- add_comment: "Work started"
constraints:
wip_limit: 3
review:
entry_actions:
- notify_reviewers
- add_checklist: review_checklist
exit_requirements:
- all_checklist_complete
done:
entry_actions:
- stop_timer
- calculate_cycle_time
- notify_stakeholders
```
### Checklist Templates
```yaml
checklist_templates:
bug_fix:
name: "Bug Fix Checklist"
items:
- "Reproduce the bug"
- "Identify root cause"
- "Write fix"
- "Add tests"
- "Test locally"
- "Code review"
- "Deploy to staging"
- "Verify fix"
feature:
name: "Feature Checklist"
items:
- "Requirements documented"
- "Design approved"
- "Implementation complete"
- "Unit tests written"
- "Integration tested"
- "Documentation updated"
- "Demo prepared"
```
## Power-Up Integrations
### Popular Power-Ups
```yaml
power_ups:
calendar:
description: "Visualize cards with due dates"
view: calendar
sync: true
custom_fields:
fields:
- name: "Priority"
type: dropdown
- name: "Estimate"
type: number
- name: "Client"
type: text
card_aging:
enable: true
mode: regular # or pirate mode
voting:
enable: true
one_vote_per_member: true
```
### Slack Integration
```yaml
slack_integration:
notifications:
- trigger: card_created
channel: "#project-updates"
- trigger: card_moved_to
list: "Done"
channel: "#wins"
- trigger: comment_added
notify: card_members
commands:
/trello:
- add_card
- search_cards
- my_cards
```
## Reporting & Analytics
### Board Metrics
```
BOARD ANALYTICS - SPRINT 15
═══════════════════════════════════════
CARDS:
Total: 45
Completed: 28 (62%)
In Progress: 12
Blocked: 2
VELOCITY:
This Sprint: 28 cards
Average: 25 cards
Trend: +12%
CYCLE TIME:
Average: 3.2 days
Shortest: 0.5 days
Longest: 8 days
BY LABEL:
Feature █████████████░░░ 18
Bug ████████░░░░░░░░ 12
Tech Debt █████░░░░░░░░░░░ 8
Other ███░░░░░░░░░░░░░ 7
BY MEMBER:
Sarah ████████████░░░░ 15
Mike ██████████░░░░░░ 12
Lisa ████████░░░░░░░░ 10
Alex ██████░░░░░░░░░░ 8
```
### Burndown Chart
```
SPRINT BURNDOWN
│ 45 ┤ ▪
│ │ ▪▪
│ │ ▪▪ ← Ideal
│ │ ▪▪
│ 22 ┤ ●●
│ │ ●● ← Actual
│ │ ▪▪●●
│ │ ▪▪●●
│ 0 ┤ ▪▪●●
└────┴────────────────────────
Day 1 Day 14
On Track: ✓ 2 cards ahead of schedule
```
## API Examples
### Create Card
```javascript
// Create Card with full details
const card = await trello.cards.create({
name: "Implement user authentication",
desc: "Add OAuth2 support for Google and GitHub",
idList: "list_id",
idLabels: ["label_id_1", "label_id_2"],
idMembers: ["member_id"],
due: "2024-01-20T17:00:00.000Z",
pos: "top"
});
// Add Checklist
await trello.cards.createChecklist(card.id, {
name: "Implementation Tasks"
});
// Add Checklist Item
await trello.checklists.createCheckItem(checklistId, {
name: "Set up OAuth provider",
checked: false
});
```
### Move Card
```javascript
// Move card to different list
await trello.cards.update(cardId, {
idList: "new_list_id",
pos: "bottom"
});
// Add comment
await trello.cards.createComment(cardId, {
text: "Moving to review. @reviewer please check."
});
```
## Best Practices
1. **Simple Lists**: 5-7 lists maximum
2. **Clear Labels**: Consistent color coding
3. **Due Dates**: Set realistic deadlines
4. **WIP Limits**: Prevent bottlenecks
5. **Regular Cleanup**: Archive completed cards
6. **Checklists**: Break down complex tasks
7. **Butler Rules**: Automate repetitive actions
8. **Board Templates**: Standardize workflowsWhat This Does
Comprehensive workflow for automating Trello board management and kanban workflows.
Quick Start
Step 1: Create a Project Folder
mkdir -p ~/Documents/TrelloAutomation
Step 2: Download the Template
Click Download above, then:
mv ~/Downloads/CLAUDE.md ~/Documents/TrelloAutomation/
Step 3: Start Working
cd ~/Documents/TrelloAutomation
claude
Best Practices
- Simple Lists: 5-7 lists maximum
- Clear Labels: Consistent color coding
- Due Dates: Set realistic deadlines
- WIP Limits: Prevent bottlenecks
- Regular Cleanup: Archive completed cards
- Checklists: Break down complex tasks
- Butler Rules: Automate repetitive actions
- Board Templates: Standardize workflows