From Publish to Page 1: How LeadWalnut Took Fortinet's Blogs to the Top in Just Six Weeks

Cybersecurity blogs demand top-notch subject matter expertise.

Especially in OT (Operational Technology) Security, which is one of the most complex and competitive areas. Why? 

• A discerning, highly technical audience who demand real, actionable insights.
• Sky-high keyword difficulty, making top rankings a distant dream.
• Long approval cycles that can delay even the best content for weeks.

Forget reaching page 1, getting the content approved alone is a task for weeks.

And yet, in just six weeks, we helped our client, Fortinet, bring four blog pages to Page 1.

It’s a story of collaboration, expertise, and smart strategy.

I sat down with Arti from the LeadWalnut team to learn how we achieved this and what made it work.

1. Cybersecurity is known for its complexity and a very discerning audience. How did you and your team prepare to tackle such a high-stakes subject matter? ‍

The client’s team was our biggest asset in navigating this complex subject matter.

But before reaching out to them, we conducted a thorough content gap analysis to identify areas where the client’s competitors were ranking, but the client was not.

Our SEO analysts conducted comprehensive research, including keyword analysis, competitive analysis, and internal linking suggestions. 

They also determined the optimal content flow, analyzing competitor websites and pages currently ranking.

Additionally, they considered user perspectives to ensure all necessary angles were covered.

Based on this research, a detailed content brief was created and shared with the client’s team. This was then reviewed, critiqued, and approved by their PMs and SEO leads.

We now had a well-structured brief that served as the foundation for the content.

This collaborative effort ensured we captured their deep domain expertise and aligned with their expectations right from the start. to was able to deliver with precision.

She shares, "The success of these articles stems from input gathered across various personas within the organization. The content brief was never about just one perspective, such as that of the SEO analyst.

We brought in insights from product managers who deeply understand the offerings and customer needs. This multi-faceted approach is what allowed us to craft a more comprehensive and targeted piece of content."

‍2. Ranking in the cybersecurity niche is no small feat. With high keyword difficulty, achieving visibility often takes months of sustained effort. Yet, your team managed to secure page 1 rankings for four key pages in just 6-8 weeks. How did you fast-track results in such a competitive environment?

It’s true that cybersecurity isn’t an easy domain to rank in.

Here’s what worked for us:

1. Coverage, Depth, Quality: Three Dimensions of Content

Once we had clarity on the topics to cover, the next step was to perfect the three critical elements of content creation: coverage, depth, and quality. Most teams tend to ignore it, but we have understood that this is crucial.

Coverage: Coverage is about how comprehensively a topic is addressed, which directly contributes to improving a site's topical authority. For this project, we ensured that every angle of the OT security niche was covered with depth and precision.

Depth: Depth adds the layer of authority to your content. We did this by providing actionable steps, technical insights, and real-world examples.

Quality: The final layer was quality, where presentation matters as much as the content itself. We ensured our writing was clear, professional, and tailored to both technical experts and decision-makers. We also ensured that the content passed readability tests like the Flesch score.

2. Early Optimization

‍SEO teams often adopt a reactive approach, making multiple rounds of corrections after content is published to improve performance. This is time-consuming and less effective. But with our tried-and-tested SEO checklist, we ensured that the content was fully optimized, making it rich and ready for google to crawl.

This proactive, data-driven approach ensured the content was “rich and ready” for search engine indexing and user engagement, right from day one. It saved valuable time, minimized post-launch tweaks, and helped us achieve ranking results faster than the industry benchmark.

3. Sharp, Advanced Interlinking

‍Fortinet has a strong domain authority and that certainly gave us a head start. But we didn’t stop there: we strategically doubled down on it through sharp and advanced interlinking. We linked these new blogs to Fortinet’s high-performing pages, passing on link equity which amplified the credibility of these pages.

3. Content quality and depth seem to have been key drivers behind this success. What does that really mean for the reader? 

1. Deeply Relevant to Audience Needs

We identified the critical pain points and challenges in OT security through extensive research and industry analysis. Each blog addressed these in a thorough, actionable manner, going beyond surface-level information.

For instance, instead of simply defining the Purdue Model, we included use cases, implementation tips, and solutions to common pitfalls. This ensured that the content was not only educational but also applicable to the reader's needs.

2. Clear Understanding of User Intent

Our content was crafted to align with user search intent, addressing specific queries and providing actionable insights.  

• We focused on answering "how," "why," and "what" questions comprehensively, ensuring it met the needs of both casual readers and technical professionals.
  
  
• For example, in OT security, a 'what' question might explore foundational concepts, a 'how' query would delve into implementation steps, and a 'why' question could address the importance of adopting certain practices.
  
  

The Results 

Here’s an overview of the results that Leadwalnut team enabled for Fortinet:

• Four OT Security Category pages ranking on first page, within 6 weeks of publishing.
  

<As of: 27/11/2024>

•  The blog on ‘Purdue Model for ICS Security’ went on to outrank the competitor blog.
  

<As of: 24/11/2024> 

• Overall, we improved our Topical Authority in the OT Secruity Niche, by producing a cluster of blogs in this space.
  
  

This is a testament to how deep subject matter expertise, strategic planning, and collaborative execution can deliver exceptional results, even in the most competitive and complex niches like OT Security.  

What’s Next? 

Our next phase focuses on expanding our position to achieve sustained visibility and traffic growth. Here's what we’re targeting:

-Dominating SERPs: While we've secured page 1 rankings, our goal is to reach the 1st position. This involves refining our content further to align with Google’s search intent signals and targeting competitive keywords with additional supporting content.

- Strengthening Topical Authority: We’ll expand our content portfolio within the OT security niche, covering adjacent topics and addressing long-tail keywords to solidify Fortinet as a thought leader in this domain.

- Rich Snippets Optimization: We’ll optimize for rich snippets by structuring content with clear FAQs, tables, and lists, enhancing its chances of being featured prominently as rich snippets.

- Acquiring High-authority Backlinks : Building high-quality backlinks remains a priority. This involves leveraging Fortinet’s industry reputation to gain links from authoritative sources, reinforcing domain credibility.

Learn more: https://www.leadwalnut.com/