By Mary,
Marketing, as a discipline, is a cross-functional activity that relies heavily on developing links with other departments within the organization in order to be successful. So there is not surprise that Search Engine Optimization (SEO), by its very nature, affects many silos beyond its own in that cross-functional SEO alignment is necessary and part of having a T-Shaped Web Marketing Skill Set –A concept championed by global design consultancy IDEO’s Tim Brown.
So how do we go about improving alignments with other areas where SEO touches?
SEO requires the collaboration of many individuals and/or departments in order to achieve success. For many SEOs this creates a challenge in that it is not always possible. Lets take a look at the infographic below with a very basic list, since we all know there are deeper relationships.
This flowchart illustrates most of the touch points of Cross-functional SEO:
Download Cross-functional SEO Infographic (PDF)
Download Cross-functional SEO Infographic (PDF)
The task to having an effective Cross-functional SEO implementation can be hinder by several reasons. Being able to identify these reasons at early stages of the SEO project, can assist in steering things in the right direction before time and energy is wasted.
REASONS:
- When roles are left undefined, task ambiguity creates project chaos
2. The perception by others that SEO Still works like this:
SEO= Keywords+Indexing+Web design+Link Building
Digital marketing should not be seen as one specialized activity but should encompass the entire organization. A good SEO Manager develops a keen eye to realized that the end game for all SEO activities is promoting the UX, and customers point of view among members of the team and the stakeholders of the organization.
Here are some links that can aid you to get your SEO project into a great path– read:
- How To Save Your SEO Project With Four Contextual Factors: This article goes over the four contextual factors that can make or break your SEO project. Plus, it gives you a great list of templates, marketing tools, and project management methodologies that are any SEO’s lifesaver.
- The article on Search Engine Journal titled Aligning Cross-Functional Marketing Teams is a great complement to the Cross-Functional SEO infographic.
Stay positive and good luck!