Is there a way to create cards from template by default when I create multiple cards simultaneously?

Question

My user story would be, I'm copying and pasting a list from excel into Trello with the intention of each cell in excel creating its own card in Trello. This is already possible.

What I want to do, is for each of those cards I create, to be created from the template, and not just a blank card. Today, there is only the option to 'create x number of cards' instead of also an option to create x number of cards from a template, then allowing me to choose which template card is used to create those new cards.

In my scenario, I'm looking to create 50+ cards via one copy and paste from excel and want them to all be formatted the same way, but now I'll have to make the updates to each card individually to format them which will take some time.

Hannah Humbert - Simpla Workflows · Answer

Yes sure there is a bunch of info online around butler automation - here's one guide that covers the basics: https://support.atlassian.com/trello/docs/butler-overview/

You may be able to achieve this all with one tool depending on your workflow. For example, with Zapier you can create cards from rows automatically, map data into Trello card fields, and add additional actions (I'm pretty sure you can add checklists automatically using Zapier).

Joe Pavlecich · Answer

Thank you for these suggestions. The process still feels a little broken along the way but what you've recommend in theory will simulate the same workflow I was hoping to achieve.

I have never used Butler with Trello before, is there any documentation you can refer me to so I can learn how to set it up?

Hannah Humbert - Simpla Workflows · Answer

Hi @Joe Pavlecich , yes that's right - it could be described as a macro. It's a trigger-based automation that allows you to create "If this, then that" statements. You have a bunch of different types of triggers you can choose from that would then automate whatever actions you need.

It sounds like you need a mix of importing data into Trello from Excel as well as adding templated information to the cards (e.g. checklists).

For importing data from a sheet, there are a bunch of options that will allow you to do this depending on your workflow. If it's just a one-off import, something like Blue Cats Import power-up could be a good option. As you can see below, you can map the Excel data into the relevant Trello fields:

Smart Import from Excel is another one, or you could look at using Zapier if you'd like to have a more automated process.

Once the data has been entered into Trello, you can then have butler automate the needed actions, for example, adding pre-defined checklists, etc. You could create blanket rules so all cards get the same data automatically added, or you could filter it (e.g. cards that have a blue label get the blue checklists, cards that have the yellow label get the yellow checklists).

Hope that helps and happy to help if you have additional questions 😊