Use templates with relative dates on cards for events planning
Asked by Will Burgess:

Hi All,

Very new to Trello and looking for some help.

I plan lots of events all with the same series of tasks, but with different actual event dates.

I want to use a template to create a new Trello board for each event but with a different final deadline and each task to automatically change its due date relative to the event date.

For example Task 1 might need to be completed 2 weeks before the event date. And task 2 only a day before the event date.

Is this possible?

I used to do this in Todoist by uploading a csv template that set due dates for each task relative to the event date by formula.

Thanks in advance.


Answers:
author: Mike
body: Hi Will,

Unfortunately, that's not possible in Trello, as due dates aren't relative and will always be static data points.

I'll let the team know that's something you're looking for!

comments: author: Will Burgess
body: Thanks Michael,

Is there a way to upload cards with a due date automatically, ala copy and paste from Excel columns?


author: Mike
body: There isn't, unfortunately.

We've got some information about how to programmatically add cards to Trello that might help here: <http://help.trello.com/article/751-importing-data-into-trello>


author: Russel
body: Any progress on this feature? Possibly using the new Trello architecture? It would be great to have the checklist items due dates created relative to the card due date.


author: Travis Bruno
body: This would DEFINITELY be a useful thing for us. Having a template for event planning that sets due dates automatically based on an actual event date (after setting event date to 09/15/2022, create/adjust due date on card to 4 weeks before that, etc).


author: Dani L'Heureux
body: Chiming in to add that this would be incredibly helpful for our team as well. The only workaround I've found is by using Butler to automate every single checklist item and on each item, add a date relative to the overall card due date or a custom field due date, but that makes it extremely difficult to change checklist items or add/remove them in the future.


author: kenni89
body: Found a workaround to move the dates on a block of cards, but haven't found a work around that then makes that system copy-able.

1) create the main card (event date)

2) create all the sub cards (other deadlines around event)

3) link all the subcards to the main card as attachments

4) create a tag that's called "keystone" or "event" or similar and then tag only the main card with it

5) create an automation that says "when a due date is moved in a card with the light black "Keystone" label, for each card linked in the attachments, move the due date by the same amount of time"

Why this isn't copyable or templatable:

when you make a card a template it lops off the dates, so you can't make it a template

if you just copy the parent card, it won't also copy the children cards, and it will also link the copied parent card to the original children cards meaning you'll now have two parents attached to the same child, which screws everything up. So, if you want to make a copy what you have to do is make a copy of each card in the run individually without selecting "copy attachment" and then relink all the new cards to each other. Once you do that, the new copy will function independently of the original