Fast track your SEO strategy – Maximizing SEO sprints for quick wins

As an SEO company, your goal is to offer your customers excellent services that will ensure high rankings in search engine results.

You aim to help them make their way to the top for the chosen keywords, consequently outranking their opponents.

It is also your aim to be paid a lot of money for what you do.

However, there are considerable obstacles in your path. 

Running an SEO campaign requires a huge time investment.

For businesses of any scale, economic depressions mean to cut marketing costs, including SEO expenses.

Moreover, designing SEO services tailored both to be logical to clients and profitable is always a hard job.

But now, we present a comprehensive remedy to these challenges in SEO projects: The SEO sprints – an agile SEO strategy, time-bounded and designed to quickly produce quantifiable results.

If you are looking for the latest SEO agency models in 2024 to enhance your SEO business, it is advisable to bring agile in all your SEO operations.

Curious to know more?

Just read on.

What is an SEO sprint?

In an agile development context, the term “sprint” refers to a relatively short period during which a team puts its efforts into completing significant work, usually reaching an important milestone or producing an important building block. 

It works as a practical way to reduce the whole project into parts and increase at the same time. The job is intense and is done all at once, just like a sprint in sports.

Reaching the top of the Search Engine Results Page (SERP) for a keyword or a phrase that is acceptable and possible is often one of the key objectives of SEO work.

Instead of rolling out new blog posts and links across several months and covering multiple keywords, more concentration is given to one keyword or phrase for a shorter duration, which is usually a few weeks.

Development sprints stand as a basis for SEO sprints.

SEO Sprints is a new generation of SEO that is focused on very goal-oriented, time-driven, measurable goals. In contrast to the traditional SEO retainers that often involve a broad ongoing plan, SEO Sprints are much more focused and quicker in producing results.

Difference between agile and traditional SEO?

The fundamental difference between these two SEO aspects is the approach, process, and way of thinking about implementing SEO strategies. 

Let’s have a quick view on agile SEO Vs. traditional SEO.

Differentiating terms	Agile SEO	Traditional SEO
Approach	This includes an incremental and flexible method. It entails splitting up SEO initiatives into smaller, manageable tasks and cycling through this process based on feedback and data. It is flexible, thus, teams can alter and perfect the campaigns easily in response to modifications in the search engine algorithms and user behavior.	Traditional SEO is characterized by a linear and sequential manner. It is characterised by massive upfront planning and strategizing, with a tendency to execute pre-set plans longer term.Alterations to the plan are rare and most often entail significant revisions.
Methodology	It utilizes an agile and iterative approach. It is focused on a cross-functional team approach, frequent communication, and rapid experimentation. Tasks are arranged in brief  iterations,(sprints) which provide scope for continuous improvement and agility towards the changing needs.	SEO, which is usually traditional, uses fixed and pre-defined strategies and timelines. Often keyword research, content creation, link building, and technical optimization are performed in separate stages with little or no crossover or integration between these stages.
Mindset	It creates an environment where experimentation, learning and adaptation are encouraged.Success is not only defined by the achievement of a set of targets but also by the ability to swiftly detect and respond to the changes in the landscape and user behaviors.	The traditional approach to SEO emphasizes conformity to the established best practices and long-range futurology. Typically, success is measured by accomplishing the previously defined goals, for example, higher search engine rankings or increased organic traffic, during a set time frame.

All in all, the traditional SEO however offers stability and predictability but the agile SEO on the contrary provides flexibility and adaptability which makes it more suitable for adjusting to the ever-evolving and unstable field of search engine optimization.

Benefits of SEO sprints?

You might be wondering, why the SEO sprint is the better SEO deal than a conventional retainer plan. It has numerous advantages as listed below.

• Rapid adaptation: SEO sprint enables the teams to instantaneously respond to changes in search engine algorithms, user behavior, and competitive landscape. Splitting tasks into short sprints allows teams to change their tactics and priorities as appropriate to remain in line with changing requirements.
• Faster results: SEO sprints are concerned with delivering on certain tasks and goals within a short period, averaging one to four weeks. This approach makes it possible for the teams to see faster results compared to the traditional SEO methods which can take more than a couple of months before the observable outcomes come up.
• Continuous improvement: It encourages a culture of continual improvement and learning. Every sprint, teams review feedback, performance, and improvement opportunities. The iterative nature of this process also facilitates the continuous improvement of SEO strategies and techniques, which ultimately yield better results.
• Increased collaboration: It emphasizes cross-team partnering and communication among team members. Through collaboration and knowledge transfer, team members can make the most of their combined abilities and address issues more efficiently thus leading to better outcomes.
• Reduced risk: SEO sprints minimize the risk of spending long hours and a lot of money on SEO strategies that might not achieve what you have planned. By splitting initiatives into smaller, more manageable bites, teams can test their hypotheses and validate their assumptions faster, limiting the fallout of possible failures.

How can agile sprint be used in SEO?

Applying the below-mentioned methods, companies can make use of Agile sprints to develop tangible improvements in their SEO performance, quickly respond to changes in the search landscape, and accomplish their goals more successfully.

1. Regular method

Applying sprints in SEO means splitting the optimization process into manageable stages that each seek to achieve specific tasks and goals.

Insights

• Experimentation and learning: SEO sprints are the means through which experimentation and learning happen through practical tests and observations. Teams can perform experiments using different content types or website optimizations to see what works best with the users.
• Iterative optimization: Experiments and data analysis provide insight that guides iterative optimization activities. The team constantly reworks their tactics according to the new findings, intending to increase the efficiency of the SEO.

Execution

• Task prioritization: Each sprint is started with the prioritization of tasks based on their estimated impact and complexity. It ensures that the most important tasks come first, hence, the productivity of the sprint is enhanced.
• Collaborative workflow: SEO sprints encourage teamwork among the team members as they work together to carry out tasks promptly and overcome challenges together.

Measurement

• Defining metrics: The SEO team first sets key performance indicators (KPIs) that will be used to measure the progress in a sprint. These metrics can be keyword rankings, organic traffic growth, and conversion rate among others.
• Regular reviews: During the sprint period the team holds regular reviews to evaluate how the team’s performance rate against established KPIs. This information allows early spotting of any deviations from the planned path and enables corrections when necessary.

2. Agile Method

The Agile Method is a project management approach that focuses on flexibility, collaboration, and continuous improvement. 

Planning

In the planning phase, teams harmonize objectives, activities, timeframes, and resources.

This is done by splitting the project into smaller components or backlogs, developing objectives and targets, and then allocating resources.

Kick-off meeting

The kick-off meeting is the start of the project and its purpose is to have everyone on the same page.

Within this session, the team members talk about the aims, scope, and expectations of the project.

It’s a chance to define roles and responsibilities, address any questions or concerns, and come up with a common vision about the purpose of the project.

Execution

During the execution phase, team members pull together to accomplish the set activities outlined in the project plan.

This involves teamwork, interactive communication, and finding solutions to problems to overcome difficulties and achieve results.

Frequent monitoring of progress is done to ensure that the project is running on time and any problems are fixed timely.

Check-ins

Check-ins are recurring status reports that are uniformly applied to all the tasks of the project. Check-ins ensure that the team is still on track to meet its objectives.

In these meetings, we can talk about the progress, and also share updates, and resolve possible challenges or problems. Check-ins allow to keep transparency, alignment, and accountability within the team into place.

Review

The application phase focuses on examining the results against the predefined KPIs that determine the success of the project.

This includes reviewing deliverables, the analysis of performance metrics, and defining ways for improvement.

Reviews serve to verify whether the project aims and objectives are reached and also provide useful considerations for future projects.

Retrospective

The retrospective is a reflection and session of learning that is conducted at the end of each project phase or sprint.

The retro not only involves day-to-day events but also looks at the performance sprint after sprint: what was good and what could be better.

This process fosters the culture of further opportunities and allows teams to reiterate and fine-tune approaches.

In the end, the Agile Method provides a structured environment in which to manage projects dynamically and collaboratively, making it possible for teams to respond rapidly to changing requirements, deliver value shortly, and continuously improve.

3. With SEOScrum automation

SEOScrum is a dedicated SEO project management software with a sprint management feature to help automate and organize the SEO process using the agile method. By SEOScrum, teams can effectively organize, carry out, and improve their SEO efforts in a collaborative and data-driven way.

This specific tool offers a single interface for task management, goal setting, and KPI monitoring. SEOScrum helps the team to share ideas and work together toward the same SEO objectives in an effective manner.

SEOScrum operates as demonstrated.

Plan

The first step is to create objectives or SEO backlogs, tasks, and timelines for the SEO project. By using SEOScrum, the planning process is facilitated because of the structured framework it provides to organize tasks and set deadlines.

Assign

After a plan is in place, tasks are distributed among team members through SEOScrum with trackable metrics. Each task is linked to its metrics which will be employed to monitor and evaluate the task.

Start sprint

After the tasks are assigned and the metrics are set, the sprint begins and the team starts working on completing the tasks. SEOScrum makes this process efficient by having a centralized platform for task management and collaboration.

Reflection Period

Once we have completed the sprint, there should be some time for search engines to index and adopt the changes performed by the team. The cooling-off period gives the effects of the SEO work some time to be seen on search engine rankings and traffic.

Review

SEOScrum automatically generates metrics attached to each requirement during the sprint. At the sprint end, the team reflects on these metrics to evaluate the success of their efforts. SEOScrum offers visibility into the main metrics like keyword rankings, organic traffic, and conversions enabling data-driven decision-making.

Retrospective

Based on the review of metrics, the team assembles a retrospective to know whether the sprint was a success or not. SEOScrum eases this process by offering tools for data analysis and for identifying areas that need improvement.

Action

Lastly, based on the deductive results, the team comes up with the next action step. If the sprint is successful, they can keep the same strategy in the following sprint. When improvements are identified they can make changes in their approach and plan for the next cycle accordingly.

How does an SEO sprint help an SEO agency?

SEO sprints provide many benefits to SEO agencies, such as better efficiency, increased client satisfaction, team collaboration, and competitive positioning.

Through adopting Agile practices and conducting SEO sprints, agencies can enhance their workflow, achieve excellent results, and ensure long-term success in the cutthroat SEO market.

5 reasons why SEO sprint outperforms traditional SEO in supporting SEO agencies:

• Enhanced client satisfaction: Sprints in SEO allow for continuous interaction and teamwork with customers, making them aware of the advancement level, problems, and openings. With a proactive approach to the client, we establish trust, transparency, and customer satisfaction as people see the tangible results and value delivered in each sprint iteration.
• Improved resource allocation: An agile approach to SEO sprints allows teams to better allocate resources by emphasizing important tasks and activities that reflect corporate goals. Through constant re-evaluation and shifting of tasks, teams can make the most of their resources and can get the highest possible return on SEO investment.
• Scalability: SEO sprints can be easily scaled to teams of all sizes and skill levels. An Agile approach can be customized to be used with small, agile teams or large cross-functional organizations, making sure the method fits the specific needs and dynamics of the organization within which it is applied.
• Empowered teams: It eliminates the need for teams to rely on others’ decisions because they are given the authority over their work and can take data-driven actions on their own. Agile methodologies create the atmosphere in which experimentation and innovation are possible through the creation of a culture that empowers, encourages creativity, and holds teams accountable, impelling them to effect change and produce results.
• Competitive advantage: SEO sprints empower organizations with a competitive advantage through the rapid response to market fluctuations, the ability to take advantage of new opportunities, and outperforming the competition. Through agility and readiness, enterprises can sustain a leadership position in the SEO ecosystem and exploit possibilities for growth and expansion.

Examples of SEO sprint template

Following are the sample templates that can be tailored to fit-in the purpose and demands of any SEO sprint. These templates create a systemic framework for outlining, implementing and evaluating SEO activities to schedule to be used within a certain time span.

Example #1:

Objective: Enhancing the domain authority of the client’s website.

Planning

• Reviewing which backlinks are now routing to the webpage.
• Finding opportunities to add backlink on High DA websites
• Compiling the final list of the sites to link to.

Sprint Execution

Sprint #1

• Task 1: Evaluate the website.
• Task 2: Backlink Audits
• Task 3: Remove low quality backlinks

Sprint #2

• Task 1: Collect websites with DA greater than 50
• Task 2: Collect websites with DA between 30 to 50
• Task 3: Collect website with DA less than 30

Sprint #3

• Task 1: Submit backlink of client domain on 5 high DA website
• Task 2: Submit backlink on 3 medium DA websites
• Task 3: Submit backlink on 2 low DA website

Carry out the Sprint #3 for 3 times to finish backlink submission of 30

Review

As soon as you leave a 15-day cool-off period after 1 month, you can always double -check if the DA is up or down. In addition of course, show you SPAM score updates as well. 

If the spam score is rising as well and you find out that some websites you added to the previous module have high SPAM scores you can try delinking them by closing their links to lower the spam score.

Retrospective

It is next that you’ll have to do a few sprints to complete your DA website link submissions. Track your weekly updates on SPAM and DA scores which are automatically fetched by the API.

The list of sites can be used to work on the next project of your customer, and you will have a good sense of what sprint is of the greatest use in obtaining high DA with our weekly progress report.

Example #2:

Objective: Seeking and creating content for long-tail keywords.

Planning

• Carry out a comprehensive investigation to single out key long-tail keywords.
• Compose them and build a content plan including every term.
• Produce and post the content on a regular basis.

Content Sprint execution

Sprint #1

• For ten blog posts, do long-tail keyword research.
• To those long-tail keywords search for semantic keywords.

Sprint #2

• Generate a list containing semantic keywords and a long tail term.
• The keywords will be utilized in a content outline.
• Make the material and finish it.

Sprint #3

• Go through the content for any other SEO elements.
• Release the material.
• Fix all internal SEO audits and create internal links.
• For the keyword search module, provide the list of keywords.

Repeat the same process for every long tail term and start to release the content regularly.

Examine

Keeping an eye on the impressions, clicks and rank positions that SEOscrum collects automatically you can assess the performance of the content published already.

Retrospective

Choose one of the tactics or techniques used by those blogs with the highest performance by reviewing all of the others’ stats side by side.

Conclusion

Right now, companies want immediate results, so they are neglecting SEO. On the other hand, SEO sprints have an Agile framework that helps you to get quick results if they are done properly.

There are advantages to using Google’s speed in indexing and ranking results. It is going to help you to include SEO in the marketing portfolio. You can now rank in just a few days or weeks but the so-called fast rankings will depend on how competitive page one of Google is.

SEO sprints can be performed on a small budget even in a short time. The takeaways from one SEO cycle are carried over to the subsequent one, thus you can reuse what was done successfully.

Enjoy your SEO Sprint with world’s first SEO agency software with scrum support SEOScrum.