NicolaLane asked
Member (0 upvotes)

Probably an eye roll question.. Hopefully not..

I have a love/hate relationship with computers and SEO. However, I find myself more drawn to it all the time. More so than even my current career as a photographer. I would love to get more into knowing MORE .. I have been considering going back to school. I am not sure if I want to pursue digital marketing or something different. I would love any advice on this. Just how to get started. I have thought of My Computer Career. com And ECPI.

I have also thought of a local technical college. I would love to do this kind of work. SEO for companies and digital marketing. Where would I start? I know its a long journey and hard work. I am ready for the challenges. I just would love feedback on how to start and where to begin.

Thank you kindly...

Matt1966
Moderator (243 upvotes)

Colleges teach SEO tripe from what I've heard.

And although learning "digital marketing" maybe some people's preference, it depends.

Do you want really know your stuff in one space, being SEO? Or do you want to dabble in a little of everything, then call yourself a digital marketer?

Personally, I have a bit of experience with PPC, Socials, and I took a big interest in conversion optimization too, but nothing came close to SEO.

Google, its algorithm, and the whole competitive, yet techy nature - which changes all the time, is what I really dig.

This course isn't too bad, she's a nice tutor too. I think you'll like it: https://www.udemy.com/course/profitable-keyword-research/ ps- remember to look for coupons.

Oh, and if it's any consolation, I think you're an awesome photographer.

Good advice?

Comments 0

NicolaLane Member

Thank you Matt. Unfortunately, photography is a dying career. Most don't really see the value and go with cheaper photographers. So I can make my work cheaper or change careers. I will likely always do some form of photography. You wouldn't believe how many people say "oh, nevermind, my friend has a really nice camera and she is going to do them for us". It is a horrible cutthroat back stabbing business. I feel drained. It also caps at a certain income, making it hard to make more money. As a single parent, I really need to be in a business with a job I love and not just anyone can do. I want to be skilled and really work with businesses both small and big to help them with their SEO. I don't really see a degree for SEO, its usually defined as digital marketing (from my research) I truly think I have outgrown my desire to photograph clients. I want to do something with computers. I want to be one of the people that KNOWS what they are doing and does it well. And in the process make more than what I do as a photographer. Computers are my second love. If I go into anything, it would be a computer field. I need something that is in demand to provide for my family. I can't ever go through what we went through again (covid) and deal with not being able to work. I must have a job that has potential growth and potential icome increase. I haven't been able to raise prices with photography, I have tried and I get crickets.. No clients. So I put prices back down and as an award winning photographer I am selling myself short. I have to though, because I need to feed my family.. It has taken the joy out of something I once loved and need a change. I am curious if any of you guys work for companies and what your job title is. I may post that as a new topic! Would be intersting to see all the answers. Thank you again so much for the information. Nicola

Matt1966 Moderator

I believe it's always possible to blend your passion into any business idea. How about a blend of what you love, mixed with SEO. For example, an old member from seochat.com used to run this website: https://www.imagesinthebackcountry.com/

Elyman2
Member (8 upvotes)

Hello Nicola,

I think this is great question and I am sure you are not alone wanting to look at SEO and website marketing as a career. My suggestion would be to identify where you want to be in this field, as best you can, before you start. The closer you get to the intricacies the more obvious the specialisms.

As an example, I started in general SEO trying my hand at pay per click too and more advanced link building as well, and I initially failed miserably. This was mostly because I didn't fully appreciate the understanding and commitment that was needed. Eventually, I homed in on local and regional SEO, and touch on other skills where needed but hiring specialists I trust to work alongside me too.

With the above in mind, do be wary of generalist online or college courses, because you might find you already know more than they teach you. They may also not fit the niche you are leaning towards, and that can be very frustrating. So if going the academic route I would suggest doing mini subject focused workshops - if available.

Online you have so many brilliant learning resources which I use to help take on new techniques and concepts. Although not always perfect, YouTube videos and Koozai TV sessions are brilliant.

Once you are clear on where you want to be - if you learn from books - folks on here will probably recommend an enormous reading list for you to plough through!!

Best wishes

Neil

Good advice?

Comments 0

NicolaLane Member

Thank you so much, I was hoping to get some kind of degree, just for the purpose of being hired.. I really think I would love cybersecurity. Although SEO and digital marketing, just figuring it out to be able to help small and big businesses get on top of Google rankings would be great.

Chedders
Moderator (243 upvotes)

Great question.

Personally, I would not recommend colleges as things in SEO change too quick for any course work to keep up to date. For example, a huge update was done this month to googles core algorithm which has got many so-called experts scratching their heads. No official name for this update but I am currently calling it the pandemic update.

As for learning material and trying to decide a route forward, I would watch a few videos on youtube (a bit hit or miss) but once you have a general idea I would nip onto https://www.udemy.com/ and find a course that suits you there. They have sales on all the time so wait for one of them before buying a course. They can be as little as $5 but most of the time around $10. Be sure to watch the intro as a lot of lecturers can have strong accents and hard to understand. So find one that has good recording facilities and native speaking. There are many based in the USA so I would imagine you will be spoilt for choice.

I would, however, avoid ones aimed directly as SEO, as with the college courses, they go out of date way to quick. Learning how to do PPC, marketing your site, etc are mostly evergreen so look within that niche.

Good advice?

Comments 0

NicolaLane Member

Thank you so much Chedders. Are there any college courses you suggest? I was thinking of getting different certifications at my compuer career dot com. I know its expensive though. And I am sure worth it. I just know I will be able to get financial aid for a community college. I love learning in a group setting. I find it hard to follow along on my own. I think I am more focused in a classroom setting. May I ask what search terms you would suggest I look at? If you are saying don't look on Udemy for SEO.. What would be best to look for. I agree, I know that google has changed so many things over the time of me running my website. I guess more than anyting. I would love to be able to go into someones website, see what is wrong and where they are failing to get to the top ranks and fix it for them. I really think I would find this very challenging and I am a very determined person. I would love to get in there, see what is going on and fix it and help them rank to get to the top. Then of course be sought after having a reputation for being good at what I do. So, ha, Where to start?? What search terms to look for on Udemy? Thank you so much! :)

Chedders Moderator

There are literally 100's of courses on there. But this one looked interesting https://www.udemy.com/course/social-media-marketing-ads/ However from what you said it may not suit what you're looking for. I would guess you're looking more at the technical side of SEO. A lot of this though comes with practice and keeping up with changes. That is a little hard to learn in a classroom environment.

Probably an eye roll question.. Hopefully not..

Related Questions