11 High-Performing SEO Project Management Software for Any Business [Free Template Included]
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SEO projects can involve many tasks, activities, and stakeholders. Therefore, businesses all over the world rely on professional SEO project management software solutions. They play a crucial role in making online work efficient and increase the chances of success in many ways.
The global SEO market size is expected to reach more than $122 billion in 2028. So, if you’re not planning to invest in professional project management software for SEO, you are likely losing out to rivals who are better organized and ready to scale than you.
There are many options for great SEO PM tools out there. In this article, we list the most competitive solutions and propose you explore their key features, pricing details, and current customer rating.
Contents:
- How project management software can be useful for SEO?
- 11 easy to use SEO project management software.
- Bonus: SEO marketing plan template.
How project management software can be useful for SEO?
Working with SEO requires a lot of time and attention to every little thing.
The sphere is constantly evolving, that is admitted by many experts, including Randy Soderman, the founder & CEO of Soderman SEO. He claims:
Every time you research, there seems to be a new SEO trend popping up and another disappearing. Google’s algorithm evolves quickly, and whatever trend worked last year might not be working this year.
It all means that to follow trends and boost the effectiveness of your SEO projects, you need to have a great theoretical background, a high-performing team, and efficient project management.
Professional PM software is what can benefit SEO because all activities and parties, which this complex area involves, need to be managed well.
Below are the key reasons why project management software can be useful for SEO.
1. Provides a structured approach
Project management software assists in forming a structured framework to schedule, execute, and monitor SEO activities. It helps define clear goals, objectives, and tasks, ensuring that everyone involved understands their responsibilities and the overall strategy.
This approach begins with a clear plan. Some features of project management software like Gantt charts, work breakdown structure (WBS), notifications, and critical path, among others, can be specifically useful to keep track of the plan once it’s put into action.
2. Ensures efficient resource allocation
SEO projects involve different resources, including material and human ones. Online project management software ensures that resources are allocated efficiently. It reduces bottlenecks and guarantees that all SEO activities are completed on time.
3. Helps with timely execution
Well-chosen project management tools help create timelines and schedules, ensuring that each task is completed within its allocated time frame. This timely execution can positively impact search engine rankings by ensuring that relevant content is published when it’s needed.
4. Streamlines communication
SEO projects can involve multiple team members and stakeholders. A powerful platform with project management functionality facilitates collaboration and communication by providing a centralized space for sharing updates, progress, and feedback. It helps prevent misunderstandings and keeps everyone on the same page.
This is actually important not only for SEO project planning but for any marketing activity as well. For example, if you work in a creative agency, you’ll need robust creative agency project management software to collaborate with your team efficiently.
5. Improves prioritization
Not all SEO tasks have the same impact on rankings and traffic. Effective project management helps prioritize tasks based on their importance and potential ROI, and professional tools ensure that critical activities receive appropriate attention.
6. Empowers data-driven decision making
SEO success relies heavily on data analysis and insights. Easy to use SEO project management software solutions help to collect data and analyze work, allowing teams to make informed decisions based on performance metrics.
7. Enhances scalability and flexibility
As SEO campaigns grow in complexity, managing them can become challenging. Proper PM software enables teams to scale their efforts while maintaining control and organization. It also allows for flexibility to adapt to changes in the SEO landscape.
8. Provides better risk management
SEO efforts can be impacted by various factors, such as technical issues, algorithm changes, or unexpected competition. If you have a trustworthy PM tool, you can quicker anticipate potential challenges and plan for alternative solutions.
9. Boosts monitoring and reporting
Typical SEO project management software provides mechanisms for tracking progress and generating reports. Regular monitoring and reporting enable teams to assess the effectiveness of their SEO strategies, identify areas for improvement, and showcase results to stakeholders.
All the advantages and characteristics of modern SEO project management platforms described above show that the competition among such software solutions is really high.
Let’s look at the most successful examples of trustworthy SEO project management platforms.
11 easy to use SEO project management software
Modern SEO project management software solutions help you keep track of all your work in one place and improve essential processes of marketing project management. They allow for project scheduling, task assigning, deadline setting, progress tracking, and much more.
They can be the best helpers for SEO teams, departments, and agencies that manage multiple projects simultaneously.
However, these tools can also be harmful if not used properly.
Commenting on the section of the State of Technical SEO Report (2023) related to the best project management tools for SEO, Martina Zrzavá Libřická, SEO consultant & digital marketing counselor from the Czech Republic, admitted:
I have worked in many project management systems. They can be a great help or they can be a terrible pain. In case you haven’t been using a project management system and want to try it, I suggest the entire team be part of it 100% or else it is pretty unlikely it will work without causing issues and frustrations.
Now, more to the point: let’s delve into the list of the top representatives of SEO PM tools.
1. GanttPRO
Basic: starts at $7.99 user/month (billed annually).
Pro: starts at $12.99 user/month (billed annually).
Business: starts at $19.99 user/month (billed annually).
Free trial: 14 days.
If you’re looking for straightforward and multifunctional SEO project management software, GanttPRO can be the best fit for you.
This online Gantt chart maker has everything to be a great assistant from the moment you start planning your SEO project to its development and fulfillment. There you can find all the essential features for smooth and effortless planning and management.
GanttPRO provides SEO teams with the advanced features and opportunities that make it highly demanded marketing project management software.
This is one of the best project management software for a marketing agency as it provides basic functionality that allows creating and assigning tasks, as well as setting dates, milestones, and dependencies.
The platform comes with a visually appealing Gantt chart. It is used to schedule SEO projects, allocate resources, track progress, control deadlines, and set dependencies and milestones.
With its help, SEO teams can always have a clear understanding of what’s going on in their projects. It is possible to manage several workspaces and projects at once.
Users can apply the Gantt chart maker to plan their work for any period, from one day to a year or more.
For example, Łukasz Wielądek, project manager at GonnaBe, the marketing and advertising agency, utilizes the software for long-term scheduling:
When I have to plan work for a team for the whole week, it’s really easy with GanttPRO.
GanttPRO is also known as a professional WBS chart creator as it helps establish logical hierarchy and break down complex tasks into smaller subtasks.
Collaboration functionality in GanttPRO is also on a high level. SEO professionals can collaborate in real time using comments, attachments, or task descriptions.
One more thing that deserves attention is that SEO project managers can provide their team members with special rights to view data. They can work with different account roles and project rights.
Professional SEO project management software
Create and manage SEO projects on an online Gantt chart.
Sign up for freeWhy is GanttPRO good for SEO project management?
- Project planning with a Gantt chart.
- Task and portfolio management.
- Resource management.
- Deadline management.
- Budget management.
- Time tracking.
- History of changes.
- Baselines.
- Project export to PNG, PDF, XML, or Excel formats.
- Import from Excel, MS Project, and JIRA Cloud.
- Reporting.
Rating as of August 2023: Capterra – 4.8/5, G2 – 4.8/5.
Quick review:
2. Asana
Basic: starts at $10.99 user/month (billed annually).
Business: starts at $24.99 user/month (billed annually).
Free trial and free version: available.
Asana is the next software solution in our list. It professionally performs many crucial functions in the SEO realm, even though it is not specifically tailored toward it.
The platform enables SEO PM managers to assign individual tasks to multiple team members and group smaller activities into larger projects. It makes it simple for teams to concentrate on their tasks at hand.
With the handy lists in Asana, SEO teams always know what they need to do, which tasks are a priority, and when a certain work activity is due. Apart from that, they can use an online board that can be accessed by both specialists responsible for SEO processes and clients.
Asana is highly customizable. Therefore, it is often used by various teams and for other purposes. For example, as advanced digital marketing project management software. It is possible to create different boards there, depending on the clients. You get a short learning curve, a straightforward interface, and a wide range of integrations that some of Asana alternatives cannot offer.
Why is Asana good for SEO project management?
- Streamlined task management.
- To-do lists.
- Board view.
- Calendar view.
- Scheduling and planning.
- Task dependencies and milestones.
- Automated critical actions.
- Reporting.
- Templates.
Rating as of August 2023: Capterra – 4.5/5, G2 – 4.3/5.
Quick review:
3. Trello
Standard: starts at $5 user/month (billed annually).
Premium: starts at $10 user/month (billed annually).
Enterprise: starts at $17.50 user/month (billed annually).
Free trial and free version: available.
Trello is one of the best project management software for SEO specialists who prefer working with visual boards and cards. It provides an advanced way to focus on critical and urgent tasks and manage various SEO roadmaps for different campaigns.
The platform allows for organizing activities according to priorities and creating to-do items using handy cards. The users of Trello can easily see the progress of their campaigns since they can move their cards from the To Do, Doing, and Done columns.
Many SEO teams that work remotely choose Trello because it comes with an intuitive interface and many additional features for planning and managing projects.
This is a smart SEO project management tool for spotting periods of downtime when productivity lacks. By having this data, you can then make quick changes to improve employee performance to get all things done.
Why is Trello good for SEO project management?
- Attractive and robust boards.
- Task management.
- Budget management.
- Сomments.
- Deadline management.
- Labeling and tags.
- Brainstorming functionality.
- File attachments.
- Collaboration.
Rating as of August 2023: Capterra – 4.5/5, G2 – 4.4/5.
Quick review:
4. ClickUp
Unlimited: starts at $10 user/month (billed annually).
Business: starts at $19 user/month (billed annually).
Free trial and free version: available.
Another software that can be used to manage SEO projects and communicate with clients is ClickUp. It provides users with a plethora of features and opportunities within a single unified interface, making it easier to effectively implement strategies for projects and assess all ongoing tasks.
With its help, SEO specialists can create lists, projects, and tasks without specific skills or extra effort. They assign activities to specific people, set due dates, track how much time it takes to complete their tasks and use special marks to define priority.
ClickUp encourages team collaboration and enables real-time reporting. It can be easily customized, and its free plan sets it apart from popular ClickUp alternatives.
Overall, this project management software for SEO allows for getting quick access to necessary information, checking what tasks should be performed, and defining when they should happen.
New-coming SEO specialists may take advantage of neat ClickUp templates available for various project workflows.
Why is ClickUp good for SEO project management?
- Project planning.
- Task management.
- To-do lists.
- Useful calendars.
- Task prioritization.
- Recurring tasks and reminders.
- Document management.
- Advanced free plan.
- File sharing.
- Real-time reporting.
Rating as of August 2023: Capterra – 4.7/5, G2 – 4.7/5.
Quick review:
5. Wrike
Professionl: starts at $9.80 user/month (billed annually).
Business: starts at $24.80 user/month (billed annually).
Free trial and free version: available.
Wrike is a professional project management tool that perfectly suits SEO teams as it helps get automatic data insights and easily manage various SEO campaigns.
The software allows users to create as many projects and tasks as they need, as well as track them and collaborate with team members. Its flexibility lets teams plan and visualize tasks with the help of an online Gantt chart, prioritize, and analyze all activities.
Wrike also allows for sharing files and checking time across projects at both team and individual levels. SEO specialists value the capability of Wrike to monitor project progress in one place and with the whole team.
Why is Wrike good for SEO project management?
- Simple task management.
- Gantt chart visualization.
- Spreadsheet view.
- Custom workflows.
- Time tracking.
- Progress tracking.
- Real-time updates.
- Reporting.
- Analytics.
- Templates.
Rating as of August 2023: Capterra – 4.3/5, G2 – 4.2/5.
Quick review:
6. Airtable
Plus: starts at $10 user/month (billed annually).
Pro: starts at $20 user/month (billed annually).
Free trial and free version: available.
Another reliable tool among the best SEO project management software solutions is Airtable.
The platform is known for its flexibility and rich opportunities for collaboration. It speeds up project workflows and maintains a constant flow of information.
This project management software offers a free version with unlimited boards, grids, calendars, and gallery views. Creating spreadsheets in a simple format is also available.
Along with planning projects and organizing SEO tasks, managers and their teams can also track inventory with the help of Airtable. Additionally, its users can personalize the interface to work more efficiently.
Why is Airtable good for SEO project management?
- Multiple project views.
- Collaboration features.
- Budget management.
- Alerts and notifications.
- Brainstorming.
- Asset categorization.
- File sharing.
- Asset library.
- Advanced automation.
- Reporting.
Rating as of August 2023: Capterra – 4.7/5, G2 – 4.6/5.
Quick review:
7. Teamwork
Starter: starts at $5.99 user/month (billed annually).
Deliver: starts at $9.99 user/month (billed annually).
Grow: starts at $19.99 user/month (billed annually).
Free trial and free version: available.
When it comes to managing long-term SEO strategies, Teamwork seems like a suitable project management solution for teams of different sizes. It is easy to use, yet powerful and feature-rich. Additionally, it has an attractive user interface.
SEO specialists can use its features to plan, organize and prioritize tasks using various project views in a central hub. Even the most complex SEO projects can be managed simultaneously and tracked with the help of a Gantt chart, lists, or board views, so you can adapt the tool to the way you work.
Teamwork allows for monitoring the progress of all activities and seeing where teams can improve their processes.
The platform offers many integrations without adding extra licenses or products to your suite.
It can be noted that some Teamwork alternatives offer quite similar features. However, it is an SEO team that can find more than others in Teamwork.
Why is Teamwork good for SEO project management?
- Project planning.
- Board view.
- Gantt chart view.
- Resource scheduling.
- Portfolio management.
- Chat/messaging.
- Time tracking.
- Project templates.
- Invoice management.
- Reporting.
Rating as of August 2023: Capterra – 4.5/5, G2 – 4.4/5.
Quick review:
8. Microsoft Project
Project Plan 1: starts at $10 user/month (billed annually).
Project Plan 3: starts at $30 user/month (billed annually).
Project Plan 5: starts at $55 user/month (billed annually).
Free trial: available.
Microsoft Project is a well-known project management solution with a great deal of options and features. There you can work on your project plan, create and assign tasks, and set deadlines.
The tool also provides its users with a complex resource management system. If you want to perform a budget analysis of your SEO project, MS Project will cover you in this as well.
Thanks to well-developed reporting systems, timeline view, and dashboards, it will be easy to follow the progress and accomplish project objectives.
One of the points that can be of concern for some users is that considering the complexity of this software, it can be difficult to learn how to use it and to become a pro in it. So much so that it requires studying a detailed Microsoft Ptoject tutorial and a lot of invested time.
However, you can always find and switch to easy-to-use MS Project alternatives.
Why is Microsoft Project good for SEO project management?
- Professional planning.
- Advanced calendar view.
- Time management.
- Resource management.
- Risk analysis.
- Task prioritization.
- Collaboration.
- Document management.
- Advanced data visualization.
- Reporting.
Rating as of August 2023: Capterra – 4.4/5, G2 – 4.0/5.
Quick overview:
9. Smartsheet
Pro: starts at $7 user/month (billed annually).
Business: starts at $25 user/month (billed annually).
Free trial and free version: available.
Smartsheet can be also considered one of the most handy and user-friendly management systems for SEO specialists and agencies.
A spreadsheet is a key tool that Smartsheet comes with. It is widely used for organizing big-sized tasks, planning, and delivering SEO projects without pain.
Besides, this easy to use SEO project management software provides multiple view options such as a Gantt diagram, grids, calendars, and other charts. They make Smartsheet a robust tool for many businesses that strive to manage their SEO projects efficiently.
The platform has an intuitive interface that makes it easy to add tasks and dependencies and also makes dashboards customized. This lets companies easily streamline their SEO project processes and increase efficiency to complete more tasks and serve more clients.
Why is Smartsheet good for SEO project management?
- Simple and powerful spreadsheets.
- Multiple project views.
- Team collaboration.
- Workflow automation.
- Content management.
- Secure request management.
- Digital asset management.
- Time tracking.
- Resource management.
- Budget management.
- File sharing.
- Reporting.
Rating as of August 2023: Capterra – 4.5/5, G2 – 4.4/5.
Quick review:
10. Zoho Projects
Premium: starts at $4 user/month (billed annually).
Enterprise: starts at $9 user/month (billed annually).
Free trial and free version: available.
Zoho Projects is a product from the Zoho Suite. It provides teams of different sizes with observability, collaboration, and productivity capabilities to upgrade PM workflows.
The platform is powerful for managing small and big SEO projects. It provides a clear overview of project tasks and milestones, allowing users to track their progress and plan their next steps accordingly.
One of the standout features of this tool is a Gantt chart that helps to map out task dependencies and schedule SEO projects more efficiently. The feature simplifies task delegation and client billing, improving overall project management efficiency.
Breaking down complex campaigns into smaller chunks and assigning them to different team members is also easy in Zoho Projects. The tool is integrated with many of its own programs as well as external apps.
Why is Zoho Projects good for SEO project management?
- Tasks management.
- Gantt chart project planning.
- To-do lists.
- Calendar view.
- Dependencies.
- Deadline management.
- Document management.
- Task prioritization.
- Timesheet module and issue tracker.
- Reporting.
Rating as of August 2023: Capterra – 4.3/5, G2 – 4.3/5.
Quick review:
11. ProofHub
Essential: starts at $45 unlimited users/month for managing up to 40 projects (billed annually).
Unlimited control: starts at $89 unlimited users/month for managing unlimited projects (billed annually).
Free trial: available.
ProofHub is a trustworthy PM platform that enables various teams to plan and manage their projects in a single workspace.
This software is especially useful for SEO departments and teams that prefer a straightforward approach and need a basic set of standard features.
You may say that such a characteristic doesn’t distinguish this tool from a number of ProofHub alternatives. However, it is rather popular and has an army of fans, including the SEO community.
ProofHub offers a centralized workspace for a variety of SEO tasks and activities. You get advanced opportunities to collaborate with your teammates, from sharing documents to having discussions. The tool helps bring everyone together under one roof. It decreases confusion and ensures more organization throughout every project.
Why is ProofHub good for SEO project management?
- Planning and scheduling.
- Various project views.
- Time management.
- Resource management.
- Advanced collaboration.
- Document management.
- Task prioritization.
- Timesheet exporting.
- Reporting.
- Templates.
Rating as of August 2023: Capterra – 4.6/5, G2 – 4.5/5.
Bonus: SEO marketing plan template
SEO beginners may find it difficult to use any project management tool. Barriers and obstacles can await them at any stage of a project life cycle.
Luckily, many online platforms come with helpful marketing project management templates. They significantly simplify the efforts of SEO specialists, assisting them in planning and managing work without headaches.
GanttPRO is not an exclusion. The Gantt chart maker offers an intuitive SEO marketing plan template that helps to streamline SEO project management processes, ensuring consistency, and enhancing marketing outcomes.
As a result, SEO teams can save time and focus more on executing their strategies efficiently.
Don’t miss out on the valuable capabilities of the best SEO project management software
Having an appropriate SEO project manaement software at yur disposal can simplify your day-to-day tasks and also amplify the potential for success.
When choosing the best tool to manage your SEO projects, consider the following factors:
- Key features.
- Pricing.
- Ease of use.
- Current ratings and user reviews.
Make sure you give all these tools a try, using their free trials and demos.
Keep in mind that with top-tier SEO project management software solutions, you have the potential to enhance team productivity and elevate the overall success of your projects.
