Case IQ, a leader in compliance and case management software, has produced an invaluable asset: rich, data-driven reports from its research team. The research reports “AI and Whistleblowing: Through the Employee Lens” and “Compliance in Practice: Insights on What’s Working, What’s Not, & The Rise of AI” contain compelling original data on AI, whistleblowing, and compliance programs from five countries, making them ideal fuel for authoritative PR storytelling. The Digital PR team at seoplus+ recognized an opportunity to transform these insights into a differentiator for a proactive media strategy.
Download Case StudyThis case study outlines how the PR team developed a structured, data-driven guest blogging strategy.
- Original research gave Case IQ unique credibility, allowing it to pitch stories that competitors couldn’t match. The Case IQ research reports surveyed employees, while competitors’ research focused on the practitioners of whistleblowing and compliance programs.
- PR placements were strengthened by strategic dual-link placement: one link inside the guest article to Case IQ’s research/case study, and one in the author bio pointing to the home page, boosting authority flow.
- The campaign contributed to measurable SEO gains, including increases in organic traffic and domain metrics, with the authority score increasing from 58 to 68 and organic traffic rising from 25,898 to 30,625 (tracked via Ahrefs).
Goals
The primary objectives of the Case IQ research-driven PR campaign were to position Case IQ as an industry authority by leveraging its proprietary research through guest blogging. With this strategy in place, they could achieve their three primary goals:
- Strengthen thought leadership in the industry by publishing data-backed insights that showcase Case IQ’s expertise and differentiate the brand from competitors.
- Increase chances of securing publication opportunities with high-domain outlets by using exclusive data and insights for guest blog outreach.
- Improve SEO performance by earning high-authority backlinks and strategically distributing link equity.
We aimed to measure success by generating qualified inbound leads and referral traffic from the Q3 strategy (June 2025 – September 2025), while also increasing organic traffic and domain authority. This was a client-facing initiative led by the PR and content teams, in collaboration with the team at Case IQ.
Challenge
Securing high-authority publications often requires more than well-written content. Top-tier publications prioritize originality and depth, offering exclusive data, original insights, and angles that deliver genuine value to their readers. Without new, data-driven proprietary insights to anchor our pitches, our client risked blending into the crowd. This limitation made it difficult to secure consistent original editorial momentum.
However, for Case IQ, this presented a unique opportunity. The PR team partnered with Case IQ’s internal team to identify and refine data from their global studies on AI and whistleblowing trends. The goal was to transform the raw datasets from their research into editorially compelling narratives, each built around a unique storytelling angle suitable for different verticals, including HR, compliance, risk management, and investigations.
Approach
Collaboration became the foundation of our PR strategy. With tailored, data-backed storylines, we pitched distinct angles to various outlets, ensuring every submission felt exclusive and highly relevant to its target readership.
Our insight-driven approach aimed to transform Case IQ’s proprietary research into compelling, high-authority guest contributions that would resonate with editors and drive measurable organic growth.
Our approach was built around five core pillars:
1. Leveraging audience search trends & industry content gaps
By evaluating audience intent, emerging workplace concerns, and gaps in competitor coverage, we identified which research reports would perform best within specific verticals.
Key activities included:
- Analyzing trending search themes within HR, compliance, and workplace investigations.
- Auditing competitor content to find underrepresented topics with high editorial demand.
- Mapping each Case IQ report to outlets where the insights would offer maximum editorial value.
This ensured every pitch aligned directly with what audiences and publishers were actively seeking.
2. Developing media-friendly narratives from proprietary data
With access to exclusive data sets from Case IQ’s team, the PR team translated complex insights into compelling editorial narratives.
We focused on:
- Turning data points into story hooks tailored to each publication’s tone and readership.
- Building multiple angle variations from the same report (e.g., regional compliance trends, workplace initiatives, AI governance).
- Ensuring each pitch highlighted Case IQ’s unique expertise through evidence-backed insights.
This allowed us to create differentiated content that stood apart from generic guest submissions.
3. Ensuring accessibility & audience value
Every piece of contributed content was crafted to be informative, accessible, and beneficial to readers, whether or not they were already Case IQ customers.
Our content approach prioritized:
- Clear, jargon-free explanations of complex workplace investigation topics.
- Actionable insights that workplace leaders could apply immediately.
- Structuring content that balances data storytelling with practical takeaways.
This helped sustain editor interest while strengthening Case IQ’s thought leadership positioning.
4. Strategic dual-link placement for maximum SEO return
To ensure PR efforts translated into measurable SEO impact, we implemented a two-link structure for each publication.
| Link Type | Location | Purpose |
| Link #1 | Within the article body | Drives contextual relevance by linking to supporting research or a case study page. |
| Link #2 | Author bio | Passes strong authority to the homepage, reinforcing domain-wide link equity. |
This dual-link architecture allowed us to maximize referral traffic, improve keyword visibility, and increase domain authority through both topical and root-level backlinks.
5. Ongoing pitching & relationship building
We completed outreach to outlets with high domain authority, strong editorial standards, and audiences aligned with Case IQ’s buyer personas.
Our outreach framework included:
- Personalized pitching tailored to each editor’s content preferences.
- Providing exclusive insights when a higher level of originality was required.
- Maintaining open communication to support multi-article relationships and future publication opportunities.
This ongoing effort secured immediate wins while also creating long-term PR momentum.
Results
PR
The research-led PR strategy delivered a substantial and measurable impact across the board. Through strategic pitching and narrative development, we secured:
- 10 confirmed publications, each supported by Case IQ’s proprietary data and tailored editorial angles.
- These articles produced approximately 20 high-quality backlinks, with an additional ~6 articles pending publication at the time of reporting.
This early momentum also strengthened relationships with editors, creating opportunities for our clients to make recurring contributions.
SEO
From an SEO perspective, our dual-link strategy of placing one link inside the article to the research/case study page and another in the author bio linking to Case IQ’s homepage contributed to meaningful gains in search performance.
Over three months (June–September 2025), the Case IQ website experienced:
- An 18.26% increase in organic traffic, rising from 25,898 to 30,625 users.
- A 17.24% increase in Domain Rating, from 58 to 68, strengthening the site’s overall authority and improving its ability to rank for competitive industry terms.
- Increased referral traffic from high-domain publications, exposing Case IQ to new, qualified audiences across HR, compliance, and risk management sectors.
These results also elevated Case IQ’s brand credibility, positioning it as a trusted authority within the investigative and compliance community.
“Working with seoplus+ helped amplify our research results, generating broader visibility and awareness of key trends affecting our category. Not only did we receive favorable coverage, but the SEO benefits extend the benefit of the research into the future, “ said Chris Bondhus, Vice President of Marketing at Case IQ.
Conclusion
This campaign demonstrates how proprietary research can become a high-performing PR asset when paired with strategic storytelling and targeted media outreach. Case IQ’s internal data allowed the PR team to secure top-tier placements, differentiate the brand from competitors, and deliver measurable SEO performance gains.
Our five-pillar approach resulted in:
- Strengthening Case IQ’s editorial authority across multiple industry verticals.
- Converting proprietary research into 10 published guest articles (with ~20 backlinks and ~6 pending).
- Supporting measurable SEO initiatives, including an 18.26% increase in organic traffic and a 17.24% in domain rating over one quarter.
For future campaigns, this case study reinforces the value of ongoing research development, strong collaboration between internal teams, and the power of pairing PR with SEO best practices, particularly through strategic link placement and data-driven narrative creation.
