Follow Along: From Churn & Burn to Long-Term SEO – My Journey in the Food Niche

[btaliat]

LHey everyone,


I’ve decided to start this follow along to document my transition from short-lived “churn and burn” SEO to building something sustainable. My hope is that by keeping this thread updated, I’ll stay accountable and also share useful takeaways along the way.

My Background​

I’m no stranger to SEO, but most of my previous experience was in the “black hat” world. Back in 2014, I ran a churn and burn campaign for a BH offer (ask.fm tracker). My money page? Believe it or not, it was a Google Docs page. I somehow ranked #1 for a keyword that had around 22,000 searches a month.


For a while, it was amazing — I was pulling in about $50 per day and feeling on top of the world. But, as with most churn and burn strategies, it didn’t last. Google eventually caught on, the rankings disappeared overnight, and so did the revenue.


That experience taught me two things:

1. Quick wins are exciting, but they’re also fragile.
2. I want to build something that can last longer than a few weeks or months.

The New Goal​

Now, I want to do SEO the right way — slow, steady, and sustainable. My current project is an Instagram page in the food niche. I’d like to start ranking it for some easy keywords that could bring in targeted traffic.


I’ve already put together some Tier 1 content for it, but honestly, I didn’t create it with SEO in mind. The posts were originally made for a class project, so they weren’t optimized for keywords or structured for ranking. Still, it’s a starting point.

Why This Thread Exists​

I’m making this follow along for two main reasons:

1. Accountability – If I have to update my progress here, I’m more likely to stick to the plan.
2. Learning in public – I know there are members here with a ton of SEO experience, so I’m hoping to get feedback along the way while also sharing what I discover.

What I Did Today​

• Made this thread to start the journey.
• Transferred one of my posts to BuzzFeed for potential use in future campaigns. (I’m still wondering — is having duplicate articles floating around a bad idea for SEO?)

Plans for Tomorrow​

• Keyword Research – Identify low-competition, easy-to-rank keywords in the food niche. I’m not aiming for massive search volumes right away — I just want quick, small wins to build momentum.
• Backlink Strategy – Since there’s limited on-page optimization I can do for an Instagram page, I’ll need to figure out the best way to drive authority through backlinks. This might mean guest posts, niche edits, or social signals.

Next Steps in the Bigger Picture​

1. Refine the Tier 1 content so it’s SEO-friendly.
2. Build a consistent publishing schedule.
3. Gradually grow backlinks while keeping everything natural.
4. Track rankings over time to see what’s working.

I’ll be updating this thread regularly with actions, results, and lessons learned — whether they’re wins or failures. If you’ve worked on SEO for social media profiles or niche pages before, your advice is more than welcome.


Let’s see if I can go from the “fast money, fast crash” SEO of my past to something that actually grows and sticks around.