This post may contain affiliate links, meaning we earn a commission for any purchases made through our link. For more info, check out our legal page.

|

Trello vs Asana Review

Blogging is a lot of work and requires what seem like endless to-do lists, it’s perhaps the ultimate challenge in project management. In this Trello vs Asana review, I’m going to break down the pros and cons of using each.

Because in having any kind of life, let alone a 9-5 and it’s easy to forget something or to drop the ball.

Keeping track of everything and switching between the notes or various checklists makes it hard to keep everything up to date and ensure you get it done. Something is bound to be forgotten.

Enter Trello and Asana, two super amazing project management tools that make running an online business soo much easier.

Both Trello and Asana are fantastic but you don’t need both, just one will ensure you stay organized.

Why You Need A Project Management Software To Stay Organized

Being organized with a blog typically involves an editorial calendar which includes:

  • Coming up with new content ideas
  • Creating content
  • Creating images
  • Determining any monetization for a post, and
  • Promoting that post

And that is JUST the editorial calendar.

You likely also have a social media calendar, an email marketing plan or strategy and the need to be regularly networking and reaching out to brands and other bloggers in your niche.

All that is just for blogging, when you add in everyday life to dos and any other work you have, it can be a lot to keep track of. Asana or Trello can help you by having task management all in one place.

The best part about each of these tools? They are both FREE.

Trello

Trello is a board based organization system.

Many of my (now former) freelance writing clients use Trello to keep their content organized. Which is how I came to hear of Trello and start using it, I then started my own board to help me keep track of all of my freelance writing assignments and pitches.

Even though I’ve pretty much switched to using Asana personally, I still like Trello for keeping track of writing assignments.

How to Get the Most Out of Trello

First, you only need one Trello account (something I didn’t realize at first). Since I had created an account to work on a client’s Trello board, I didn’t need to create a new one in order to create a personal Board.

Trello is broken out by Boards>Columns>Cards.

Each board should cover something different, for example you might have a separate board for your:

In each board, you can create columns and cards that you can move around to help organize tasks. For example on my freelance writing board I have the following columns:

  • Stories Pitched
  • Articles to Outline
  • Outlined
  • Researched
  • Drafted
  • Submitted
  • Invoiced
  • Paid
  • Done

Then each card is one story, that moves from column to column based on where I am with the article.

Within each card I can add a checklist of what the editorial requirements are based on the client and set a due date.

With cards you can also:

  • Attach files
  • Tag team members
  • Attach labels based  on what works for you

I also like this format because if one client shoots down a story idea I have it right there to pitch to another client.

Check out this video to get familiar with Trello:

Pros

  • Easy visual organization
  • Can customize cards with checklists, labels, attachments, and due dates
  • Can move items easily between columns
  • Easy to get started using

Cons

  • No central “to-do” list to view everything you need to get done
  • Setting up a “Power-Up” is a bit complicated and you can only do one per card on the free version anyway

Asana

I first heard of Asana in early 2016 and was super pumped about it, except I really didn’t know how to use it in a way that helped me get ish done. I quickly gave up on it and later in the year learned about Trello.

However, now everything from running by business to a reminder to give my dog a bath is in my Asana task list.

How to Get the Most Out of Asana

After I took the course and got everything set up in Asana it was great, but I did kind of struggle with the move to a list based rather than a board based tool when it came time to keeping track of my freelance writing work. But low and behold, Asana now offers boards too!

Which means I can do both lists and boards while still having an overall list that shows everything I need to do. #winning

Another couple of bonuses? You can send emails to Asana be automatically converted into tasks you need to do.

You can also have up to 5 people on your team for free.

This came in handy when I had a VA do some work for me, I was able to just assign the task to her and avoid a lot of back and forth email.

While I was hesitant about Asana at first, thanks to the course that showed me how to use Asana I’m a total convert now.

Check out this video to help you get familiar with Asana.

Pros

  • Centralized to-do list
  • Can do both lists and boards
  • Able to add checklists, attachments (including linking up google drive), and subtasks to each task
  • Can set due dates for subtasks and tasks
  • Can have team projects and private projects

Cons

  • Takes a little work to get it set up in a way that works
  • Can’t yet convert a list to a board
  • Must use a domain based email address

Bottom Line

Both Trello and Asana are great tools to help you stay organized and on top of everything.

Though personally, I’ve finding Asana easier to manage EVERYTHING overall and easy to bring on help when needed. While the learning curve is greater for Asana, Matt’s course Asana for Bloggers is perfect to help you overcome it and get your blogging tasks rocking on Asana.

Related: The 80/20 Rule of Blogging

Similar Posts

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *