How SEO can work with digital marketing teams

In digital marketing, agencies and in-house teams often separate into specialized units like SEO, PPC and content marketing. 

While this division makes sense internally, it doesn’t align with how customers experience a brand online. Customers don’t think in silos – they interact with a brand’s digital presence holistically.

This reality calls for a unified approach to digital marketing, where SEO plays a pivotal role.

With its broad skill set encompassing research, copywriting, technical insights and digital PR, SEO professionals are uniquely positioned to bridge gaps between different marketing disciplines.

This article explores how SEOs can collaborate across digital marketing teams to create a more cohesive strategy, enhancing overall effectiveness and delivering better results for both businesses and customers.

Sharing research

SEO teams gather extensive research, which is the foundation of their strategy. 

They analyze keywords customers use and search volumes, which I call the “voice of the customer” – a clear reflection of what they want. 

They also research competitors, compiling data on what ranks well for them and how their sites perform.

This research provides valuable insight into competitors’ SEO strategies and the customer journey they are targeting. It shows what competitors prioritize based on their rankings and recent content.

This information is highly useful to the broader marketing team. For example, it can supply the paid media team with keyword data and give content teams insight into where competitors are focusing their efforts.

Dig deeper: Top 7 Google Ads and SEO synergies you should act upon

Copywriting: Skills sharing and training

Copywriting is a key skill for SEO, as content is one of its main pillars. 

With Google’s improved understanding of context, SEO copy should now simply be excellent writing. While keyword themes are still important, the days of spammy SEO content are over.

This makes copywriting a valuable skill to share and train other teams on.

If other teams are creating website copy, they should understand SEO requirements to ensure the content is optimized.

Likewise, SEO teams can learn from paid media teams.

For example, meta descriptions are like paid ad headlines, so studying high-performing ad copy and click-through rates can help improve SEO content’s impact on search results.

Technical collaboration

Technical SEO pros possess specialized knowledge about how a website’s technical health and decisions affect its visibility on search engines. 

This creates a significant opportunity for technical SEOs to collaborate with website product owners and web developers within the digital marketing team. 

Building a strong relationship between these teams is crucial for a successful search strategy, especially since SEO can often seem mysterious to those outside the field. 

Clear communication and data-driven decision-making can empower both teams.

Additionally, collaboration between the SEO team and the UX team is essential. A website that fails to convert users won’t support the SEO strategy and vice versa. 

By working together on technical optimizations and design enhancements, both teams can improve performance and enhance the customer experience.

Dig deeper: Boosting search conversions: 5 behavioral strategies to test

Digital PR: Building authority for all

Digital PR is often treated as a subset of SEO, overlooking its broader benefits for the overall marketing strategy.

While it originated from link building efforts, in 2024, digital PR encompasses much more.

It closely connects with content, influencer outreach, social media and traditional PR. When these teams collaborate, they can create truly impactful results.

An effective digital PR strategy enhances every stage of the customer journey. Although link building remains a goal for SEO, the authority gained extends beyond that. 

By working with the strategic team to understand audience personas and their online behavior, insights can guide targeted strategies. 

Collaboration with the social media team also opens up opportunities to leverage trends. 

For instance, at my agency, our pet insurance brand relies heavily on social media for topic generation, whether endorsing trends or advising against them, like the trend of dyeing dogs’ fur. This alignment between teams is vital for a successful strategy.

Metrics across the customer journey

Data is one of the greatest strengths and biggest challenges of digital marketing. 

We have access to a wealth of information that can be reported in various ways, leading to numerous reports for different meetings and purposes. 

Aligning data across teams is crucial. It helps everyone agree on how to attribute conversions and understand the customer journey, which can transform the digital marketing strategy.

When channels and campaigns have clarity on their roles, they can focus their efforts effectively.

Not every activity needs to show a direct ROI; some efforts are meant to raise awareness and spark interest, and that’s perfectly valid.

If the SEO team collaborates with other departments to create a unified approach to reporting on the customer journey – mapping their needs and actions – they can unlock tremendous potential for all teams involved.

Champions for the customer

In a digital marketing team, it’s essential to have champions for the customer – team members who remember that our ultimate goal is to inspire the audience to make a purchase, in whatever form that takes.

Whether from the SEO team, PPC team or others, all departments should unite to enhance the customer journey. I often liken the customer to a baton in a relay race; once a team has it, they need to effectively pass it through various channels.

Each team, including SEO, has valuable contributions to make. The key is to foster collaboration, share knowledge and maintain a customer-centric focus. The more teams understand each other’s strengths, the better they can work together.

When was the last time you shared knowledge with another department? If it’s been over six weeks, consider suggesting a lunch-and-learn session.

Improving collaboration isn’t just a leadership responsibility – anyone on the team can initiate it. So, think about how you can make a difference today.

Dig deeper: Customer-centric SEO: Adapting your search strategy for success