With football season now in full swing, everyone is wearing their favorite team jersey, talking up their team's success, and undoubtedly expecting big wins and accomplishments for their team. What makes this American sport a favorite among many is that there is always something brewing. From drafts and trades, to injuries and outstanding plays and performances, football season certainly doesn't go unnoticed. Even fantasy football has become an increasingly popular pastime - and football fans are serious about their team picks. So, what do football and SEO have in common?

If you work in SEO, your main goal is to make it to the top. Well, the same can be said about football. But, they have more in common than just winning. It's also about perfecting a winning strategy.

Have a strategy

To win anything, you need a game plan. Like designing a play in order to score a touchdown, you need to put together a strategy to help your website make its way to the top. Do you have the right set of tactics for your marketing efforts? Are you able to measure, track and adjust your tactics?

Know your competitor

This is one of the most important points in your game plan. Just like knowing the current standing of an opposing football team, where does your competitor stand in the SERPs? What is your ranking in comparison to theirs? If they are higher than you in the Google standings, what actions are you going to take to move above them? How do they promote a similar product or service, and how can you promote yours better?

Work as a team

Just like a coach needs his team to execute a play, you need a team of online marketers to work together to help you reach your goal. From developers to link builders, content writers and social media marketers, it's important that you are all aware of the strategy for a successful play.

Be willing to improve

No one ever made it anywhere by sticking to the same routine. If a game plan has failed, why continue to run the same plays? The same theory can be applied to SEO campaigns. If you want to make it to the top of the SERPs, you can't always stick to the same strategy - you need to discover and find new and better ways to get to the top.

Play by the rules

While football players have referees and whistles, marketers have Google algorithms. You have guidelines to play by to ensure that you play fair. It's crucial that you play by Google's rules and make it to the top without performing black hat techniques. A skilled and experienced SEO company will go about winning the right way.

Get noticed

In football and SEO, you don't want to just win, you want to get noticed. Press releases, articles, blogs and social media are all intricate parts of putting your business in the spotlight. When an SEO campaign works properly, you’ll feel the need to celebrate like a receiver who just snagged a touchdown for the victory.