New here – trying to learn SEO properly from scratch

[michaelwilliams1]

Hey everyone,


I’ve been reading around the forum for a bit and finally decided to stop lurking and introduce myself properly.


I’m completely new to SEO and making money online in general, but I’m genuinely interested in learning how things actually work and building something long-term instead of chasing random methods.


Right now, I don’t have a fixed niche or strategy yet — I’m still trying to figure out what’s realistic for someone starting from zero and what’s just hype online.


If you were in my position today, what would you focus on first?
SEO, freelancing, affiliate marketing, or something else entirely?


Also, if there are any common beginner mistakes I should avoid early on, I’d really appreciate the advice.


I’m here to learn, stay consistent, and actually apply what I learn.


Thanks in advance

 

[MajestySEO]

SEO is a full time job. If you are already doing freelance work, trying to learn SEO on the side is going to be tough. You will not be able to give it the attention it needs.

If you really want to learn SEO, buy cheap hosting, get a domain, and build a blog. Try to rank that site yourself. You will literally learn SEO the best way by doing the actual work.

Stick to that one site for at least six months. If you do not give it time to work, you will never know if it was a good idea or not.

 

[michaelwilliams1]

SEO is a full time job. If you are already doing freelance work, trying to learn SEO on the side is going to be tough. You will not be able to give it the attention it needs.

If you really want to learn SEO, buy cheap hosting, get a domain, and build a blog. Try to rank that site yourself. You will literally learn SEO the best way by doing the actual work.

Stick to that one site for at least six months. If you do not give it time to work, you will never know if it was a good idea or not.

That makes sense, I can see how trying to learn it on the side would slow things down.
I like the idea of learning by actually building something instead of just reading about it.


I think I’ll start with a simple blog and stick with it consistently for a few months like you said.


When you were starting, what did you struggle with the most in the first few months?

 

[hsoulz]

Don’t listen to what anyone says. Just spend 14–18 hours a day learning and grinding consistently, and no matter what you did before or what you’re doing now, you can still succeed. Keep pushing forward.

 

[proxygo]

there are some of us here almost 20 yrs
and we are still learning new seo tricks

 

[APIFuel]

If I were starting today, I’d focus on learning SEO fundamentals while building a small project of my own.
Hands-on experience teaches far more than jumping between random make money online methods.

 

[hbar19]

like your way alot.....building something long-term instead of chasing random methods....
Definitely i will also like to build something stable or atleast giving money forever. I like the way
1. never invest big money in anything
2. Diversify your sources of income

 

[PitterPatter]

I suggest to start with SEO first and learn basic properly, trying too may things together just giving confusion in the beginning. so just stay consistent and keep testing things slowly with time you will understand what is working for you.

 

[Danielcross]

Hey everyone,


I’ve been reading around the forum for a bit and finally decided to stop lurking and introduce myself properly.


I’m completely new to SEO and making money online in general, but I’m genuinely interested in learning how things actually work and building something long-term instead of chasing random methods.


Right now, I don’t have a fixed niche or strategy yet — I’m still trying to figure out what’s realistic for someone starting from zero and what’s just hype online.


If you were in my position today, what would you focus on first?
SEO, freelancing, affiliate marketing, or something else entirely?


Also, if there are any common beginner mistakes I should avoid early on, I’d really appreciate the advice.


I’m here to learn, stay consistent, and actually apply what I learn.


Thanks in advance

Honestly consistency is probably the biggest advantage when starting from zero. A lot of beginners jump between methods too quickly instead of sticking with one long enough to learn properly

 

[safex]

Prepare a road map and day to day planner and follow it for 90-days that's it.

 

[nigunim]

Focus on learning SEO and a simple skill like content writing or website building first, because those skills can be used in affiliate marketing, freelancing and almost any online business later. The biggest beginner mistake is chasing every new "easy money" method instead of sticking with one path long enough to actually learn and improve.

 

[SERPKingdom]

That’s a solid approach, especially the part about measuring business metrics instead of obsessing over rankings. A lot of local sites technically “rank” but still fail because the traffic never converts into calls or leads.


One thing I’d add is to prioritize trust signals early reviews, location consistency, and real local relevance often move the needle faster than publishing endless blog posts. Common mistake is expanding into too many service areas before the main location is performing well.

 

[Revenuestream1]

Start with one thing like SEO or freelancing and stick to it. Don’t jump between methods. Biggest mistake is chasing fast money instead of learning slowly and consistently.

 

[Emily Ranker]

Start a small niche site today and learn by actually doing it instead of just reading, don't waste your cash on expensive tools or courses yet because most of them are just hype. Once you figure out how to rank for easy keywords, the money part gets way simpler.

 

[michaelwilliams1]

there are some of us here almost 20 yrs
and we are still learning new seo tricks

okay thank for the advice

 

[michaelwilliams1]

If I were starting today, I’d focus on learning SEO fundamentals while building a small project of my own.
Hands-on experience teaches far more than jumping between random make money online methods.

noted

 

[Nikolaos]

Hey everyone,


I’ve been reading around the forum for a bit and finally decided to stop lurking and introduce myself properly.


I’m completely new to SEO and making money online in general, but I’m genuinely interested in learning how things actually work and building something long-term instead of chasing random methods.


Right now, I don’t have a fixed niche or strategy yet — I’m still trying to figure out what’s realistic for someone starting from zero and what’s just hype online.


If you were in my position today, what would you focus on first?
SEO, freelancing, affiliate marketing, or something else entirely?


Also, if there are any common beginner mistakes I should avoid early on, I’d really appreciate the advice.


I’m here to learn, stay consistent, and actually apply what I learn.


Thanks in advance

You can learn SEO from cheap Udemy courses (when there's a promotion) for 10-20$ per course. I would focus on learning SEO then selling it as a skill or using it on my own websites.

 

[KamranKhatri]

Hey everyone,


I’ve been reading around the forum for a bit and finally decided to stop lurking and introduce myself properly.


I’m completely new to SEO and making money online in general, but I’m genuinely interested in learning how things actually work and building something long-term instead of chasing random methods.


Right now, I don’t have a fixed niche or strategy yet — I’m still trying to figure out what’s realistic for someone starting from zero and what’s just hype online.


If you were in my position today, what would you focus on first?
SEO, freelancing, affiliate marketing, or something else entirely?


Also, if there are any common beginner mistakes I should avoid early on, I’d really appreciate the advice.


I’m here to learn, stay consistent, and actually apply what I learn.


Thanks in advance

Welcome to BHW and good luck on your journey.


If I were starting from scratch today, I would focus on learning the fundamentals of SEO while building a simple website in a niche that genuinely interests me. The biggest mistake beginners make is spending months consuming courses, YouTube videos, and forum posts without actually building anything. Even a small test site will teach you more about keyword research, content creation, indexing, and rankings than endless theory.


I'd also avoid chasing every new trend or "easy money" method that pops up online. Pick one path, whether that's SEO, affiliate marketing, freelancing, or local lead generation, and stick with it long enough to see results. Learn keyword research, understand search intent, write useful content, and be patient. SEO is usually a long-term game, but the skills you develop can be used in almost any online business model later on. Consistency beats shortcuts in this industry more often than people realize.