The future after you master the many SEO intricacies might be bright, but for now, you need to pay your bills.
Learning the basics and the main terminology can take just a few weeks.
However, SEO is not a black-and-white field, with exceptions to the rules and unpredictable patterns in Google’s continually evolving algorithms.
So, if you’re just getting familiar with its concepts or even feel stronger about your knowledge, you won’t immediately score a high-paying position.
In this article, I will tell you how you can support yourself financially as you set yourself up for a future in the SEO industry.
Furthermore, we provide tips on how to shape your career and which types of SEO specialists are most attainable for beginners.
How Long Does it Take to Learn SEO?
You might be eager to know the approximate time required to learn SEO. However, any time range is incorrect, as SEO is moving, shifting, and surprising its specialists. Hence, the path to learning SEO can seem never-ending, with specialists continually adapting to trends.
So, even if you think that you have gathered a comfortable pile of knowledge, it is likely missing the most crucial ingredient: experience.
It is not exactly about when you fully learn SEO, but about when you become hireable as such a specialist. It appears that after 3-6 months of learning, you can start applying for many junior (entry-level) positions.
How to Get Experience Before Getting Hired?
During interviews for junior positions, you notice that the recruiters continuously ask about former personal projects. Without an answer, you immediately decrease your chances of getting hired. Here are a few ideas to get SEO experience without actually starting an official position:
- Offer SEO services free of charge to clients who cannot afford the paid services. Of course, take on smaller projects and warn your clients about your limited experience with SEO.
- Invest in your website and start experimenting with different strategies. Then, you will surely have stories to share during interviews.
- If possible, apply for internships that may pay very little but offer you guidance and experience in the field.
Support Your SEO Learning With These Earning Strategies
Learning SEO can happen at any point in life: it’s never too late! So, if you just quit your job to explore other ventures, the following list should be of much help.
Share Unused Internet Bandwidth
One option for generating additional income effortlessly is to make money selling unused internet data. It doesn’t require any equipment or effort, just an internet connection. After you download an app like Honeygain, you enable it to share unused internet bandwidth, and it then manages itself and runs without your intervention.
Become a Gig Worker
It is possible to get jobs without going through tedious interviews and tests. The gig economy is wonderful, and besides the usual candidates like Uber, you can explore the variety of gigs online. In most cases, you can choose between two types of gigs:
- You can get paid for online assignments, which involve watching ads, trying new digital products, following people on social media, or testing mobile games. The advantage of this is that you do not need to leave your home and squeeze in these jobs during your breaks from SEO learning.
- The other option is applying for physical jobs, such as cleaning homes, walking dogs, and repairing or building furniture. If you need a break from your computer or another device, these gigs get you out of the house.
Document Your Journey
A promising opportunity is to document your SEO learning by starting a blog. Not only will you get to practice your skills, but it can also open up many income venues. The easiest option is to start a blog and share your newly acquired expertise there. Through a blog, you can earn in the following ways:
- Integrated ads/ad networks.
- Sponsored content (not immediately).
- Affiliate marketing (not immediately).
- Selling products.
With the selling products opportunity, you can consider selling templates, useful content outlines, structures, etc.
Become a Social Media Influencer
You might have little interest in social media, but it can be great practice with SEO skills, too. After all, social media employs many SEO strategies relevant to search engines. So, crafting your community and experimenting will also give you experience with SEO for social media, including how keywords and content creation work there (and how you can optimize them for better performance).
Get a Suitable Job for the Time Being
Given that you need 3-6 months to land an SEO-related position, it might be best to get a job for this time. However, it should be somewhat flexible, and rotating shifts are likely highly relevant for you. They give you enough time to relax and learn, meaning you have more free time to learn than on the weekend.
Offer SEO Services at a Low Cost
After a month of drilling the new information into your brain, you should be somewhat knowledgeable in the topic. Hence, you can create a freelancing profile and offer your low-cost services to interested clients. The chances are that you will need more time to complete tasks, but since you will do it at a small fraction of the price, you should attract potential clients.
For this, we recommend starting with your local job market, meaning posting about your services to people/businesses in your country. For example, join Facebook Groups that consist of SEO experts and their potential clients. Make a post and see if you generate interest.
If you prefer to go global, consider Upwork and other freelancing platforms like Upwork or Fiverr.
Types of SEO Specialists/Positions
As a junior, you won’t qualify for senior positions, but you should know that certain SEO job titles or specializations exist within the SEO ranks. Such topics are likely to be covered in your courses or other learning opportunities. However, you should recognize these specialties within as soon as possible so you can determine your main interest and start pursuing it:
- On-site SEO specialists focus on how the website looks and performs, including its content strategy. Usually, these experts also know the essentials of technical SEO (as they relate to on-site SEO).
- Off-site SEO specialists do not manage or handle content on your website. They specialize in link-building strategies that would allow you to have your website mentioned and linked on other respectable platforms.
- Technical SEO experts look at the websites’ bones, examining their links, site structure, crawlability, indexability, loading speeds, and other important aspects.
However, while these are the main SEO specializations, AI SEO specialists are also emerging. Specifically, they explore the options of getting websites featured in AI answers, which is another level of organic site promotion. Some older positions include smaller specializations such as SEO exports that focus on e-commerce, social media, or mobile optimization.
Conclusion
SEO has always been a promising field, with many specialists having no issue in finding a suitable job.
However, the path to becoming a true, respected specialist takes time, and learning the basics is the first step.
After that, all lessons should be backed up by practical tasks, such as testing strategies on websites or experiencing them first-hand.
If possible, look for internships or junior roles in SEO agencies. Specialists at these companies are likely the most versatile experts, having to handle and adapt to different scenarios and clients within minutes.
