Classic Trello was the Perfect PMS for Marketing Agencies

Choosing the right project management system is a tough call for any marketing agency. There’s more options than ever (and somehow they’re all running Google Ads saying they’re better than the one you just searched for). We’ve probably all tried a few of them firsthand and each PMS does bring something distinct to the marketplace. The cluttered space is a war of features and integrations — the best project management tool is the one that does the most. At least, that’s the theory. But if that wasn’t the case? Maybe agencies don’t need a very expensive multi-tool covered in flimsy add-on’s. I think there’s something to be said about a lightweight solution that does the one important thing it’s supposed to do: move projects forward.

I haven’t used Trello professionally since 2021/2022. The app seems to have changed a lot in that time so I can’t speak to how well it performs in 2025. Still, an exploration of past experience can be a useful counter-argument away from ornateness and intricacy, which I think define the modern project management ecosystem, towards what Trello brought to the market, ease of use and singleness of purpose.

Easy to Use for Junior Team members and Contractors

Coming from applications like Asana and Monday.com, my first experience with Trello felt like a big downgrade. Trello seemed clunky and outdated. It didn’t offer all the features and customizations I expected in a project management tool and I wasn’t impressed; maybe Trello was good for students or small teams, but certainly not serious marketing agencies.

I’ve tried alternatives like ProofHub, Teamwork.com, and others since then. And somewhere along the way, I began to see the value in Trello’s simplicity that I missed before.

Trello is more friendly to New Talent

Gen X and the Millennials enthusiastically eroded the standards of business communication. That’s fine for us; we remember the rules from when there were rules, so we can thread the needle of always being very professional and very casual at the same time. But no thought was given to how much harder we were making each workplace interaction for younger generations. (I think Gen Z’s negative professional reputation doesn’t stem from “bad work ethic” and has much more to do with confusion surrounding the vague and unspoken expectations surrounding work communication.)

For recent college grads and new talent, posting on the company’s PMS must be a frustrating, confusing chore. Everyone on the team interacts with the app differently, so there’s no template that can be copied. It’s generally unclear what should be said, not to mention when and where it should be posted. The more complex your project management solution, the harder it’s going to be for young talent to participate. And while I’m “picking” on Gen Z here, the general rule applies across any diverse work environment. International team members, members from other cultures, and members with different accessibility experiences are all going to face unique challenges navigating business communication. Unless your agency is willing to provide actual training on this, and most aren’t, the best solution to accommodate everyone is going to be a simple app.

Trello is great for Contractors and Third-party Contributors

Contractors generally don’t get paid for internal communication time and having to step into a new PMS is a major nuisance; contractors will likely be juggling numerous profiles across different apps, each with localized company-specific panels, integrations, and informal chat expectations. So it’s unrealistic to build processes that magically assume contractors will be able to perfectly participate on your PMS…unless you’re willing to compensate them for correct usage.

But it’s not just contractors who co-habit your project management solution. In some cases, third-party contributors (or even the client themselves) will be active there too. So those boards may be the only place where the internal team, contractors, and third-party people all interact. That alone generates a lot of nuance. Trello’s simplicity again shines here. It’s easy for everyone to hop in, see the most important updates, and get a basic overview of progress status. More complex conversations can happen by email or Slack, it doesn’t need to occur on the PMS.

Limitations Push Specific Activity to Better Optimized Platforms

It’s kind of crazy how many different tools go into making any marketing product. On a normal day, you will likely find yourself jumping between Google suite, Figma, Slack, email, and at least one PMS (some agencies use multiple concurrently!). From a project management and operations perspective, it’s pure chaos. So, what’s the solution? Well, there’s the temptation to streamline everything into one place. It seems intuitive, right?

ClickUp’s entire model is exactly this. They’re the “everything app” that connects everyone in a shared collaborative environment. Sounds great! In my opinion though, it just doesn’t work in practice. Condensing so much activity down to one place has an inverse compounding effect: unless standards of control and consistency are expertly maintained across all teams and contributors, the result is even more acute internal confusion.

Trello (historically) did one thing very well. Anything outside of those cute boards, well, you had to find a different app. I actually like that much better. It helps clarify the division of what communication and activity should happen where, and those additional services are performed on platforms designed exclusively to better conduct that work.

Plus, the promise of “One App to Rule Them All” is such a pipe-dream because it’s not like your clients won’t continue to use whatever platforms they use. For example, a team on Monday.com might use Monday Docs for everything — but client docs will still be on Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace. There’s only so much you can clean up the process and unfortunately, I insist the returns rapidly diminish or become counter-productive.

Don’t Get Locked In

Let’s say your agency decides to go all-in on the ClickUp model. You migrate everything over — itself a long, costly process — then close all the old accounts and train the team on fresh processes. Time passes. What happens if people aren’t liking the new system? Or if the nature of your business evolves and an alternative platform happens to become more appropriate? I’d go so far as to say either option isn’t just possible, but inevitable. At some point in the future, you probably will leave your current PMS. Putting all your eggs in one basket massively restricts the flexibility of your operations to move onto something better when the time comes. Ultimately, it’s just a lot easier to app hop when you split functions across multiple platforms.

Trello Is Energizing

The best, most important reason marketers should use Trello is because it’s fun. At least, fun for your production people. Trello probably isn’t the ideal solution for complex managerial functions. I think that’s okay. Those operations can happen somewhere else. Let Trello be a simple, rewarding place where people can watch their projects unfold visually. It’s so satisfying to use Trello-style boards: progress feels good, there’s a sense of achievement and momentum.

Contrast this with the experience of using more sophisticated alternatives. There’s still boards, you still move items along the process, but that activity occurs against a frenzied backdrop of displays, panel views, product updates, and a thousand unread notifications. It’s draining. You’re reminded of the countless other tasks requesting your attention. The work is never over.

Can a PMS be cozy?

Remember those sunset backgrounds? Classic Trello had a visual look that felt a little clunkier than other apps. It was visually less stark and utilitarian. And it was distinct, something I appreciate now more after seeing this strange trend of all collaborative apps starting to kind of look the same. (Out of the box, I swear Slack, Monday, and Teamwork all use the same exact colors and design styles.) When you were on Trello, you were clearly on Trello. I like that about it.

The App Today: The New Trello

Open up the Trello website with all the bigger, more serious project management app websites in other tabs. If you just compare them, Trello feels so much less overwhelming. I think that suggests the app has retained its signature simplicity. It’s also quite a bit cheaper, which makes sense because it offers substantially less — it’s not even entirely fair to say the product competes with Monday.com or ClickUp, they’re in different market positions, but naturally I see that as a selling point for Trello.

That Atlassian is calling 2025’s upgraded app the “new Trello” could be a good or bad thing. There’s a lot more integrations (and new AI features, gross). But I can see scenarios in which this enhanced functionality helps Trello fit into operations that do necessitate complexity. It actually looks better than ever — something I don’t say often about tech products these days. The marketing does convey that the core simplicity that I loved about the app has been retained. So who knows, maybe I’ll get to use it in an agency setting? It’d certainly be cool to see this new Trello in action.