SEO – A Sport in Itself?

As we near the end of the Olympics and what has arguably been the greatest summer for sport in recent memory, it’s been difficult not to get caught up and let the excitement creep over into the working day. It got me thinking that maybe SEO and sport aren’t so different. Both require hard work and determination, teamwork where required, and are governed by a set of rules and regulations.

It wasn’t long until I thought of a way to integrate sport into a link building campaign – sports clubs. Websites are becoming increasingly more crucial for organisations, and sports teams are no exception. I began searching for local sports teams in the same location as my client and began formulating a list to contact.

The next step was to offer something to the clubs by way of donation/sponsorship. This of course depends entirely on the client and what it is they have to offer – e-commerce sites may wish to donate vouchers for their products, museums and other tourist attractions could offer free entry tickets for a team building day, travel companies might offer flight discounts– it’s a case of finding what a client can offer that will prove beneficial for the club.

Obviously, the bigger the club the better the link, but as with all link building try and balance out the value of the link with the likelihood of getting it. Not only this, but a locally recognised women’s handball team may appreciate discounted flights more than, say, Manchester City.

‘If all sixty of my private jets ever break down, I’ll get back to you.’

The rest was simple. Find the contact details and send the club a brief, friendly and personalised e-mail. Be sure to show an actual interest in the club – i.e. researching who their next opponent is. Here’s an example of what I sent:

Hi there,

I hope you’re well. My name is Dane, and I’m currently undergoing some online development and research on behalf of (client). I came across the (name of sports team) site whilst searching for sports teams in and around (location of client).

The reason I contact you is to offer the team free tickets/vouchers to the client attractions/products. These could be used for a team day out, or perhaps even offered to fans through a competition/raffle. All we ask for in return is a link to the (client) site (http://www.clientsite.com/).

I’d very much appreciate if you could let me know if this is possible.

Good luck against (next opponent)!

Many thanks and kind regards,

Dane

The following day I received a response from the club secretary, who was more than happy to accept the offer and post a link to the client’s site. Result!

Time to celebrate!

Although I’m yet to try this method fully, I’ve thus far found it to be a mostly effortless and great way of providing something to local sports teams that’s mutually beneficial.

Thought of a way of mixing sport with SEO? Please share below!