You probably have already heard of those programming Hackathon events, where IT teams collaborate to develop a software product prototype. At the end of the event, the judges select the winning solution, which later turns into a real-world software product.
Well, an SEO Hackathon is just like that. One of Loopex Digital’s goals with the Hackathon was to give the team members a space for creativity and autonomy to come up with working SEO campaign ideas.
That being said, our main focus was to organize a friendly contest that would establish a healthy competitive spirit, help the staff break out of the routine, and boost communication in the two departments of our company.
Here’s how we organized the competition, tackled the challenges, and had fun in the process.
When it comes to search engine optimization, it’s not that easy to surprise an SEO with the diversity or complexity of tasks. One way or another, Loopex specialists happen to tackle various, often very diverse, tasks daily. Well, that’s the unique nature of an SEO career.
As you might guess, we had to get creative picking assignments that would excite and challenge. The tasks we developed were:
When we got down to the selection of the teams, we made sure to split the participants in a way that encourages stronger peer-to-peer communication. So, each team was to be made up of:
The entire preparation process for the Hackathon lasted a month. Once a week, the teams had Zoom meetings with their team leads to share updates on the work process and ask questions to get guidance.
To ensure the evaluation was 100% fair and objective, we chose 5 main criteria to judge the teams’ work: creativity, innovation, “wow factor”, collaboration, and presentation.
What makes us really happy as the organizers of the SEO Hackathon is that the contest actually did succeed in achieving active collaboration. As the team members later shared, they felt excited to get involved in the functions of one another’s positions and connect on a deeper level. Along the way, they learned new practical techniques and sharpened analytical skills due to complete autonomy and independent decision-making.
Now comes the best part!
On the final day of the SEO Hackathon, we had all 6 teams pitch their work and show off their public speaking skills. After each team’s entry, we held a Q&A session that summarized the presentations and helped determine the final scores later.
Later that day, we moved to a less formal setting, where we could relax, chit chat, and have a picnic outdoors. In this relaxed setting, we finally announced the results!
To be fair, the contest was a tough one! All of the participating teams had done an excellent job on at least two of the three tasks. Some were great at unlocking the strategy task, while others nailed the SEO campaign ideas.
So, the judges announced the winners; the team who scored the most points in total sum! Due to the balanced teamwork, functioning SEO campaign ideas, and successful strategy breakdown, the “200 OK” team won the SEO Hackathon and the prize!
Our first-ever internal SEO Hackathon was a memorable experience that reaffirmed our belief in the benefits of healthy competition, the positive effects of cross-department collaboration, and employee independence.
The success we had with our first ever SEO Hackathon left us thinking, “We should do this again sometime!” How about next year?
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