So you’re just getting started with Mural? We’re here to help. Read on to learn more about what we’re all about — and how to bring harmony and order to a world filled with chaos and noise. That’s right, the big stuff.
What is Mural?
Mural is a visual work platform that helps all kinds of teams do better work together — from anywhere.
Whether in real time or asynchronously, with Mural you can get aligned quickly with templates, prompts, and proven methods that empower you to solve even the toughest problems faster and more collaboratively. Teammates can gather their ideas and feedback in one spot to see the big picture of any project, and act decisively. And shared murals show your work, increase transparency, and build cross-functional alignment.
The old ways of work aren’t working. It’s time to change not just where, but how you work.
Welcome to Mural.
Why Mural?
Get the best ideas from everyone on your team
You know the deal — you’re in a meeting with someone standing in front of a slide deck, droning on while everyone around a table tries their best not to be noticed.
That’s the old way. And it’s not great.
When you bring everyone together in a mural, there’s no one voice that dominates the discussion, no static slides to sit through, no barriers to communication. Everyone can participate — everyone’s got a voice and a way to add value, and the results are no comparison. That’s why brainstorming, planning, and project management are all better with Mural — you ditch the blind spots and silos, and instead get alignment, inspiration, and yes, even fun.
Work efficiently — together
With Mural, you can cut through the noise. Instead of getting lost in a jumble of tasks that lack any sense of prioritization, or process for its own sake, Mural makes it easy to visualize your work so that it’s clear what’s most important.
Huge boulders become smaller rocks, as you define your goals and then brainstorm all the tasks you’ll need to achieve them with your team. Then, it’s easy to get aligned on responsibilities and track progress across any project.
And the best part? This can be done in real time, or completely asynchronously — no matter where your teammates live, they’ve all got a shared source of truth with Mural.
Learn more about how visual collaboration increases retention and speed to innovation
Make it easier for everyone to engage
Effective meeting communication doesn’t happen in just one direction. Mural lets you level the playing field by giving everyone the tools to engage, whether they’re sitting in the office next to you, or half way around the world.
“We needed a flexible, easy way to collaborate visually among all parties — and we found that with Mural.” — Stephen Goetzinger, Chief Product Owner | Steelcase
Having a shared digital space may not be something new — but a platform is only as effective as it is intuitive. That’s why Mural is built to make work easy, with a streamlined UI that only includes what you’ll need to do your best work — and nothing more.
Built for teams and enterprises alike
Mural isn’t just a better way for teams to work together — it’s a new way of working that can revolutionize how your entire organization gets work done. Just look at IBM.
Not only that, it’s built with enterprise-ready features that are ready to scale immediately and security features that'll make your IT leaders breathe a sigh of relief. In fact, it probably works seamlessly with your existing tech stack (see below).
Get more done in a snap
Your workflows probably involve a few different platforms, and that’s OK. We’re still here to help, with a suite of integrations and award-winning applications, including the Mural app for Microsoft Teams.
Easily link sticky notes from your murals to tools like Jira and Asana to track tasks across platforms in real-time, reducing friction and enabling better alignment and coordination. And that’s just a start.
What can teams do in Mural?
Mural is the go-to visual work platform for teams for a reason. You already know how we help you get everyone connected and engaged, but have you considered all the ways you can work more effectively — visually — together?
Let’s take a look at a few.
Team building and icebreakers
Sometimes people cringe when they hear the word ‘icebreaker,’ but the fact is, they have a measurably positive effect on teamwork. (‘Tis true — we’re not the only ones saying it.)
Mural is great for icebreakers because of how flexible and easy to use it is — get everyone involved in a shared space, where every voice is heard and every team member can contribute, and you’ll be amazed at the results.
Strategy and planning
When you’re building a strategy, planning for the next big release, or defining objectives and key results, it’s critical to make sure everyone’s on the same page — or, might we suggest, canvas. Avoid blind spots and identify the best path forward by creating an environment where everyone feels comfortable sharing their ideas, knowledge, and expertise.
Alignment and coordination
When it’s time to make big decisions, and start setting up next steps, you need something that can improve cross-functional teamwork and help you reach alignment fast.
Spoiler alert: Mural is great for that.
Whether you’re mapping stakeholders, taking a vote, or assigning tasks to team members, Mural makes it easy every step of the way.
Brainstorming and ideation
Mural is where all your ideas come to shine. Thanks to all that good stuff we talked about earlier (a shared digital space, an environment where people feel comfortable sharing, easy-to-use features — the list goes on), there's no better way to brainstorm than with Mural.
Regardless of where you are or what time zone you’re in, you can be confident that you’ll be able to think creatively, capture the best ideas, and develop solutions that make an impact — all in one place.
5 ways to get your team started with Mural
The stage is set! We’ve convinced you (nailed it!). Now, how do you use the damn thing?
Here’s how to prepare and onboard your team so that your journey with Mural is characterized by clichés like ‘smooth sailing’ and ‘flippin’ awesome’ (if you’ll pardon our language).
(Note: If what you’re looking for is simply how to sign in and make a mural, we’ve got a super-straightforward — but admittedly slightly less hilarious — walkthrough here.)
1. Lead the charge by leveling up your own skills
As the old saying goes, there’s no better way to learn than by doing. You can always join one of our live webinars, where we introduce you to the platform and take you through important steps, as well as answer any questions you might have.
Of course, there are more resources for you if you’d rather do it at your own pace. We offer self-guided trainings, including video walkthroughs, for:
- collaborators (when you’re joining a mural but maybe not creating murals… yet);
- creators (one-time collaborators who now enjoy all the great things Mural can offer);
- and team leaders (helping introduce others to the wonders of Mural).
2. Get your team involved with basic visual collaboration
Believe it or not, there are more reasons to use Mural than plain ol’ fun. In fact, visual collaboration has known cognitive benefits that help us remember and process information faster (by reducing cognitive load — it’s a whole thing).
Even if you’re starting with a blank canvas and a few sticky notes, it’s the best way to get your ideas down, and help them transform into something you can share and build on with your team.
3. Create custom templates to fit your team workflows
Look — we’ve got hundreds of templates (including 36 built by the design thinking experts at LUMA Institute), and frankly, we’re pretty proud of them. But we get it. Sometimes, you just need something very specific for your team.
That’s why, in both cases, we’ve got you covered. If you want to get started quickly, or just want some inspiration, you can browse and select from our template library, and modify any of our templates to suit your needs. Or, you can create your own and publish it to your workspace.
It’s up to you, whether you’ve got a free or paid account.
4. Integrate Mural with your favorite tools and workflows
We know we’re (likely) not the only collaboration platform in your tech stack — even though we’d like to be (sigh). And that’s the reason we’ve built out seamless workflows and integrations with your (other) favorite platforms.
Whether you’re on a Microsoft Teams call (or even a video conference with that other company), or tracking tasks and processes in Asana — Mural makes it better by adding a visual component to your work (remember that good cognitive science stuff?).
Check out our complete list of integrations.
5. Learn how to use Mural with your team from our experts
In case it’s not obvious, we love this stuff.
So we’ve got a lot of resources and folks who would love nothing better than to help you get started on the right foot and never look back to that awful time in your work life when you hadn’t yet found Mural.
Here’s a few things to look through to get started — and never hesitate to reach out to us, whether it’s getting in touch with Sales, or just saying hello on social.
- Mural Webinars
- Support
- Templates
- Blog
- Socials: LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter (do we have to say ‘X’ now?), YouTube
Accomplish more together with your team — wherever you are
So, we’ve had fun. We’ve laughed, we’ve cried (hopefully not, actually), and we’ve learned. Now is when the fun starts.
What will you create? How will you bring your team together and your ideas to life?
We can’t wait to find out. 🎉
Sign up for a free forever plan with Mural to start collaborating better today with your team. They’ll thank you for it!
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