I want to talk about bolstering your digital footprint as an SEO strategy. When we talk about a “digital footprint,” we are referring to a person or entity’s overall presence on the internet. In order to understand this strategy, I want to explain the mindset behind it, and then talk about how I am using it.

Before I begin I must note that this is an experimental strategy. At the core is the idea of transparency and enhanced user experience, which in turn will hopefully benefit the SEO of a given project.

I will be using my own projects as examples, because this is a strategy that I am actively using to bolster my own digital footprint. The internet continues to evolve, and independent publishers must be savvier than ever to compete.

One Website is a Lonely Traveler

When you have just one website, or entity such a social media account or YouTube channel. Picture a lone boat in a vast ocean, or a singular space shuttle in the vast universe, fending for itself.

As this entity grows, it becomes a much more powerful and dense force. Each article you publish, each link it acquires, improves its overall density and perceived quality, thus bolstering the digital footprint of that particular website.

However, a lone traveler can only become so dense, so powerful on its own. If it encounters a fleet of warships, or a network of sites, all equipped with different strengths and assets and linked together, it is likely to pale in comparison, no matter how much depth has been covered on that one website.

For me, this lonely traveler was Extra Chill. I built that blog many years ago as a college student, and it has grown into one very strong, robust ship. However, for a long time, it was just one solo ship, and didn’t have a fleet to support it.

A Second, Interconnected Site Enters the Scene

Adding a second website to your fleet is another asset for you. This website can be about another topic, completely unrelated to the original vessel. But — and this is where the digital footprint comes into play, — it must be transparent that the sites are related in some way.

If the sites do not mention each other, and exist in separate spheres, they do not get to reap the benefits of an enhanced digital footprint. They are simply two ships operating in the vast expanse. They may be uniquely powerful, but united they stand much stronger (in theory).

One way you could implement this strategy is this general concept: if you have a YouTube channel, start a blog about that channel. If you have a blog about a topic, create another website about the blog owner and link to it.

For example, in my own world, this second site was Sarai Chinwag. Here’s where it becomes inception, and brings the digital footprint into play.

Sarai Chinwag was originally a writer on Extra Chill. Saraichinwag.com is the writer’s personal blog, where she publishes content that leans into the randomness. There are features coded in to enhance the randomness, such as shuffle buttons, making for a fun and engaging exploration overall.

Sarai Chinwag’s writer profile on Extra Chill links to Saraichinwag.com and transparently calls itself for what it is. Which is a spin-off of Extra Chill about a different topic, with less restrictions. Sarai Chinwag’s homepage and about page mention that she was first a writer for Extra Chill, with a link back.

Here’s where it gets really fun. On the about page for Sarai Chinwag, it credits me, Chris Huber, as the creator of the site and the persona, and links to Extra Chill and a third site, this website, chubes.net.

A Third, Centralized Website Bolsters the Fleet

Chubes.net is a centralized hub that can be found via Extra Chill or Sarai Chinwag, and where either site can be found via the other. All three sites are linked together, effectively making them function seamlessly as one entity, with three separate, uniquely engaging facets.

If any more sites enter the fleet, they will all branch back to chubes.net, as the centralized hub where people can learn more and find other projects. Visitors can also see photos of me and learn my entire life story, thus humanizing me, the business owner, to my audience.

It enhances the overall rabbit hole effect of all three websites, as it provides multiple paths for users to go down in their explorations of the brand. If they start on Extra Chill, and enjoy something that I wrote, they can come here and learn more about me, and even find Sarai Chinwag.

It works from the other direction, too, with people who discover Sarai Chinwag and become curious. They may find themselves on chubes.net, and then on Extra Chill, interacting within this entire digital ecosystem.

Conclusion: A Meta-Analysis

The ultimate experimental nature of this strategy is that it is being done transparently and in real time. So, if you find this article and are curious if it’s working, you have the means to explore my projects and find out for yourself.

You may also be able to replicate this strategy with your own projects. However, I would only recommend doing it if it proves to be beneficial, which at this time, it has not yet been proven to me. Google’s Helpful Content Update in September 2023 did a number on my business.

The main idea is essentially to create a defense system for your business that makes it a more powerful, robust, and well-rounded competitor in the digital market.