107: ODEO Alumni Journey Series: From Music Class to Meta Tags with Shiri Silkin

Danny Gavin (Host): 00:05

Welcome back. I’m Danny Gavin, founder of Optidge, Marketing Professor, and the host of the Digital Marketing Mentor. In 2026, we’re introducing a new feature style series that I’m especially excited about: spotlighting alumni of ODEO Academy and sharing real, behind-the-scenes stories of career transitions into digital marketing. These episodes are all about the journey where someone started, what pushed them to make a change, what it was actually like to learn digital marketing from the ground up, and where they are now after taking that leap. 

 

Today’s guest is a great example of that journey. 

 

I’m joined by Shiri, an ODEO Academy alum who made a career pivot into digital marketing and is now an SEO strategist for Sandler Digital. Shiri brings a thoughtful, honest perspective on what it really takes to transition into this field, from the doubts and the challenges to the wins and growth along the way. 

In this conversation, we’ll talk about Shiri’s background before marketing, what led her to make a change, her experience inside Odeo Academy, how she landed her first opportunities, and the advice she’d give to anyone considering a similar path. So whether you’re exploring digital marketing for the first time, thinking about a career pivot, or just curious what these journeys actually look like in real life, this episode is for you. All right, Shiri. So tell us a little bit about your career before digital marketing.

Shiri Silkin: 01:38

Before I actually went into digital marketing, I ran a music studio, taught some piano and guitar lessons, and I mainly worked in a primary school, working with children around maybe seven or eight. That was like my main job before I went into marketing.

Danny Gavin (Host): 01:51

And what did you enjoy most about working with kids or working in the music studio?

Shiri Silkin: 01:55

Getting a feel of just working with other people than I’m not necessarily your type and just, you know, working in an environment with other types. That’s pretty much the main thing that I enjoyed a lot.

Danny Gavin (Host): 02:05

And before getting into the world of digital marketing, how did you see yourself professionally?

 

Shiri Silkin: 02:09

Well, I was young and very naive. So I didn’t actually see myself as a professional digital marketer at all. It wasn’t very something I was actually thinking of. Before that, I, you know, I just worked because I had the time and I was just out of seminary. So it was more like, you know, make up my time, get some money as well. And just I wasn’t actually thinking about profession before that, no.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 02:29

When was the first time you realized that you needed a change? And how did you discover Odeo Academy?

 

Shiri Silkin: 02:33

I needed a change and I realized that, you know, working in a school, working in a studio, it wasn’t necessarily very, how should we say, stable. It wasn’t necessarily something that I could do that I felt like was a long-term profession that I needed to do. I found out about audio. Well, firstly, I did a lot of research on lots of different courses, you know, whether it was interior design and whether it was um a lot of psychology and all. A lot of it spoke to me, but then someone, my sister’s friend, told me about Odeo. And literally from the first second, I was like, okay, this is what I’m doing. In my head, it covered everything. Like it was , this is the type of job you can do remotely. So I could just take it anywhere, I go back on the beach, I can wrap it in my house. Like it’s the type of job I can do whenever, whatever. And one of the things that spoke to me a lot is that digital marketing, it basically includes everything. You know, if you want to be good at content writing, you can do that. Do you want to be good at designing, so you can also do that? It wasn’t, it didn’t feel boring to me. It felt very interesting. Google’s always changing, there’s always more to learn, there’s always, you know, more to update. It’s never just the same thing, regular. This is what I saw in digital marketing that really pulled me. That it was very, it was very interesting, especially for a computer job. Um, that’s what it was.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 03:39

So, how did that compare to the other courses? Did they seem like they were just more than one track? You wouldn’t have much flexibility.

 

Shiri Silkin: 03:45

Very much. It covered like, you know, more or less one topic, but it was even just to do with maths or whether it was even just to do with, you know, design. I felt that with digital marketing you can have almost everything, you know, in just a computer job. It’s not like you have to rely on other people. And, you know, once you have the job, you’re in it. You’re you’re you’ve got a job. You know, you don’t have to like to call up your designers and get your name out there as much as it’s just online for you.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 04:08

So once you knew that digital marketing was for you, what were you looking to achieve by taking audio?

 

Shiri Silkin: 04:15

It really looked like it’s it’s a strong foundation. Audio covers everything, literally everything. I found that lots of times it’s a lot of it is uh theory, the audio, and then the practicality is actually getting a job, which a lot of times makes sense, and of course. So I did take it, which was all the theory, but it really covers everything, all the foundation that you need to know. And you feel solid after you’ve taken the course. You really feel like you’re confident, you can have help, you know what you’re doing, you know, there’s a set standard every single week, different challenges. So it did feel very stable. And yeah, it really did speak to me like that.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 04:47

I know it’s a couple months ago, but was there anything that made you hesitant before signing up?

 

Shiri Silkin: 04:53

No, really not.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 04:54

You felt good.

 

Shiri Silkin: 04:56

Yeah. Take all the boxes. People say studying can be boring, business and marketing are not boring. Odio made it really interesting and you know, it really really teaches you.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 05:05

So now going deeper into the program, what were some of the most impactful skills or concepts you learned during the program?

 

Shiri Silkin: 05:11

Because in theory, everything’s like in the book. Once I put it into a job, I felt like, oh yeah, Odio taught me this, and oh yeah, Odeo taught me that. Whilst I was doing the pools were not so much, but as I took into my content and, you know, I do a lot of content writing, and as I took into my job, I realized, oh yeah, of course I know this. Odeo taught this to me. So I feel like it’s very general that there were a lot of things I just automatically picked up because I had learned it with Odeo.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 05:33

It’s interesting that you mentioned theory. So obviously in Odeo, we try to do the challenges and the final project. Do you still feel like those are theoretical relative to a real job? Or did those actually help you get into that next job?

 

Shiri Silkin: 05:46

No, of course it helped. You know, you’re not actually a digital marketer or an SEO of a business. You know, you gotta learn it somehow. In my head, if I would tell someone what I was doing, it would obviously all be in theory until they actually see it in a job. You know, you can explain why we have title tags and why this H2 and why the better descriptions. Once I saw it on my computer, I was like, of course I know this. I learned it with ODO.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 06:05

While you were studying, was there something that surprised you?

 

Shiri Silkin: 06:07

Basically, everything’s surprising. I tell you what, it’s interesting that Rifki Levin kept telling me, I don’t know if she still likes you, but she kept telling me it’s like a light bulb, you know. You study and study and study, and I found that ODO was and with digital marketing is a completely new subject. I found that, you know, you’re not necessarily including maths here in a URL, but a lot of it was extremely new. I said it’s like learning math for the first time, just had to come out of sense. And she kept telling me, a light bulb’s gonna turn on. And I was like, I’m not gonna say I found it very easy at the beginning. I didn’t. And I really worked hard, like I worked a bit too hard, and I studied and studied and studied way over my time. And I felt that, you know, I was waiting for the moment. And then towards the end, I literally got it. And I was like, obviously, like it made so much sense. And she kept telling me, you’ll get it. And I really, really did. And I think that the ongoing support that Odeo gives really helps you understand everything you need to know. You’re not left being doubted with absolutely anything. Because, you know, I feel like that’s what surprised me the most. It was something so new, and then I just was like, oh, makes so much sense. Odeo already got me there.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 07:07

Yeah, just to restate what that is, like we’ll tell people, like when you’re in the thick of it, learning about SEO, learning about Google Ads, it might seem overwhelming. But, you know, as with anything, the first time you learn it, it’s gonna be overwhelming. But that’s why in the course we go everything two, three times. And by the end, yeah, there is for most people, almost everyone, there’s that light bulb moment, that click where it’s like, ah, now I understand how it all fits together.

 

Shiri Silkin: 07:29

And 100%.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 07:31

That’s really cool.

 

Shiri Silkin: 07:31

It really and it really does happen. I’m not gonna say I always believed it, and when it happened, I was so grateful. I was like, thank you. Like, now I get it, you know, all that help. It’s really amazing.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 07:42

Well, sure, it’s kind of like SEO, right? We work on it very hard. We don’t always see the results, but then it works, right?

 

Shiri Silkin: 07:47

Exactly.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 07:48

That’s cool.

 

Shiri Silkin: 07:49

Exactly.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 07:50

A lot of people who take Odeo are people who are switching careers. Now, obviously, you didn’t have such a large career before getting into digital marketing, but there’s people who are like nurses for years, and a lot of them are kind of scared to do a career change. Do you have any advice for them?

 

Shiri Silkin: 08:05

Having an online job is very useful, especially my job. She is very easy with how many hours I want to do. I officially do four hours a day, but I could do more, I could do less. It’s very flexible. Having an online job, it’s useful, I guess. You know, you as I said, you could take however you like. Being a nurse and being all the different other jobs are much more demanding, you know. You can open up your laptop if you want your website to do well, which is demanding, but at the end of the day, it’s more or less up to you. Rather than going into a job and being in person, I find it a bit more demanding in that sense of just opening up your laptop at 11 o’clock in the night because I want to work for an hour instead of working tomorrow morning. Much more flexible, I find. Do I have advice then? Um, listen, audio is a great course. So if you’re not, you don’t have to be worried about that. And digital marketing is also an amazing thing, and there’s always jobs I find. So go ahead, I guess. Follow your dreams.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 08:55

What did the job search or next steps look like after you finished Odeo?

 

Shiri Silkin: 08:59

There’s always jobs for SEO. I don’t know if this should be recorded, but I actually had a really good Hashgacha Pratis story with my job because I had actually met this lady to meet her son. This shidduch didn’t work…I remember the lady telling me about SEO.., well, maybe she has something. In the end, she ended up becoming my boss. So I actually had a really easy time finding a job. But most people I know who have taken the course have all fan jobs. I know I have a friend who’s already, I think, taken three jobs since she took the course. There’s always jobs in SEO. She’s like, yeah, she did one, and then she did another, and then she did another, and no maybe it was better pay, maybe it was better um hours. But I find that with Google, every single website doesn’t even just need one person working with them, they can have multiple people working for them. So there’s always a job with SEO, and I didn’t find that hard.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 09:43

Wait, so for our non-Jewish listeners, so you went on an arranged date because that’s what we do in the Orthodox world. You didn’t end up moving forward with the relationship with this young man, but you’re saying his mother was the one who was now your boss for SEO. Exactly. That is cool. So that is a perfect example of how God provides us with all these blessings and things around us. And sometimes we don’t know why we had to go through. So, like, for example, Shiri, she had to go through this date, which yeah, it didn’t really work out. But you know what? Because of that, she was able to get her first job. That is so cool and so meaningful.

 

Shiri Silkin: 10:17

And yeah, and I had no C and I had no interview with her, and she didn’t need my CV because when we were meeting each other, I spoke to everyone about my ODO cool. I’ve been learning with ODO. So when she asked me for the job, she already knew everything. So I was like, great, and I got the job on the spot.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 10:31

That is so cool.

 

Shiri Silkin: 10:33

Yeah, that’s amazing. But my friends who have taken the ODO course have all said it’s not hard to find a job with SEO.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 10:38

Yeah, and you know, especially I think, especially in the UK. Sometimes people are like, oh my gosh, I’m in the UK, I’m a smaller country, it’s not America. But uh, it’s pretty surprising. You know, like even you, right? You’re working for an American-based company. And uh, if anything, there’s actually a lot of SEO companies and agencies in the UK. So uh whether you’re in the UK, whether you’re in the US or Israel or South Africa, maybe it makes a difference, there are lots of opportunities. Let’s talk about your career right now. So, can you share what your current role looks like today?

 

Shiri Silkin: 11:07

My current role is quite general. As I said, she’ll often give me lots of different tasks along the way. You know, she’ll tell me we’re low ranking on. So I work for a company, one of them is called let’s see, NYK, B New York Kitchen and Bath. She’ll tell me one day we’re not ranking well on the kitchen page. Let’s find out why. We’ll research competitors, we’ll research our key words, what have we been dropping in, and then we’ll find ways of integrating all of that into things like our website, maybe spreading words across the page or across the site. It’s very much like daily tasks, you know. Um, we need another content for this page, or we’re low ranking on another page, and then I’ll, you know, we’ll research as much as we can, as well as citations and backlinks and emailing different companies. That’s basically my role. It’s very much day-to-day. And often they’ll say, My boss will say to me, you know, can you update this page? And then I’ll sometimes work on the design and I’ll generate pictures from AI. So that’s why I said, you know, you’re never doing the same thing every day. You’re always changing. And it’s interesting that, especially for a computer job, it’s always changing. It’s never boring.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 12:06

Cool. So, like just to present it to our listeners, so you’re in more of an entry-level role, more of an assistant role, where the strategy is really set more by like your manager, by your boss, and then you’re going and implementing. But I imagine that through you implementing, you’re learning more, and you’re starting to see things through the eyes of your manager as well.

 

Shiri Silkin: 12:27

A hundred percent. The more I do, the more I’m learning. Their hands-on experience is always the best. But the foundation, of course, comes from audio. I wouldn’t know what to do if I didn’t have a deal. So it all starts from there.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 12:36

In the specific position, does it look like there’s room for growth? Is there the opportunity where they’ll come, they’ll come to you and be like, hey, we want you to control the strategy for these websites or for these companies?

 

Shiri Silkin: 12:47

For sure. Especially in SEO, I find there’s always loads of work. We’re forever checking the website. So sometimes it’s like, shouldn’t it? But let’s say, for example, as I mentioned a couple of times, is my blog content, it’s gotten to a point that I’m just in charge of that kind of thing. You know, I’m just playing my role and basically playing with that. I’ve only been working for her for about a year, and she’s already presenting me with just so many tasks. And I’m more or less trustworthy. I usually draft it on a doc and she approves it, and then I just set it up. And most times it’s just that’s the way it goes. And most times I get it right, more or less. But of course there’s room for growth. There’s always room for growth in SEO. The more you do, the more you’ll be able to learn it.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 13:23

What are you most proud of in your marketing journey so far?

 

Shiri Silkin: 13:26

Getting right is always the best. And seeing when your web size rank, it’s done better that month, you know, checking in SEM rush, how far we’ve gone sometimes when you update Ps and their keywords, and you know, you update it and optimize it, and then you see, oh, it’s actually doing well. I find SEO because it’s quite general, you know, it’s not like Google Ads where you can just put something on and you see a story. Then it could sometimes be quite hard to be like, did my content do anything? Like, did my keywords, did my optimization do anything? But after a gradual time, you see what you’ve done and you’re like, oh, interesting. Something’s something’s happened.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 13:58

So to rephrase it a bit, you see a lot of little wins along the way over the past year. You may not have seen one big win here or there. But rather it’s like those little wins that carry you through.

 

Shiri Silkin: 14:10

Yeah, for sure.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 14:11

Now that you are where you are today, what do you wish you had known before you started your career transition?

 

Shiri Silkin: 14:16

Again, as I said, at the beginning, I did not find it easy. I didn’t, the light bulb didn’t click for me. Had I known what I’d be doing now when I was studying, I don’t know. I would have thought, you know, like this would have worked. Because at the end of the day, the light bulb did turn on. Now that I do have a job, and now that I very much understand all the fundamentals , I’m really, really integrating everything that I’ve learned. Had I known that then, I, you know, it would have obviously been so much simpler. But obviously, I need to work hard to get there.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 14:43

What would you say is your favorite part of your job right now? I know you’re doing a lot of different things, but is there some aspect that you like more than others?

 

Shiri Silkin: 14:50

Doing research and seeing what Google’s doing can often be a bit like a challenge. What we’re gonna do now and what are other people doing, and you know, watching videos and watching podcasts and trying to think about ways that the thing can often be quite challenging. The better part of things is when you’ve got it and then you’re like, right, let’s do this, let’s try it out, let’s see what happens to our website. That’s usually the more or less nicer side. It happens, I do enjoy challenges, you know, it’s good, it’s good for the brain, and you know, you’re working through it, and then you actually get the end result and it does feel good. So, but I can’t say it’s not so easy. But I find that when you actually start integrating things into the website, then you know, does that have a good feeling?

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 15:26

You mentioned podcasts and videos. Are you often watching or listening to marketing or SEO podcasts and videos? Yeah. And how so how often?

 

Shiri Silkin: 15:36

As much as I can when I have the time. As much as I follow OGO’s podcasts, I often also get Neil Patel’s emails and webinars. And I usually also watch those. So um, as I said, Google’s always changing. There’s never, it’s never ending. It’ll continue going, especially with AI and the whole, you know, new strategies of ChatGPT and LLMs. Um, watching podcasts really do help.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 15:58

So, where do you see your career heading next? Are there any specializations or other roles that you’re curious to explore?

 

Shiri Silkin: 16:04

I think I’m still in the state of learning. A year it’s not so much, it’s definitely a lot, but not so much. Um, I actually saw an advertisement on Slack from a job that I think posted maybe. Um I actually emailed them, they asked me for an interview. So we’ll see what that takes. Yeah, that’s quite interesting. Um, but I feel like because I’m still in the learning mode, you know, yeah, you learn a lot, then I think we’ll see how it goes from there. And then maybe one day I’ll be the head of a marketing company.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 16:28

Cool. Well, we’ve spoken a lot about marketing a job. Let’s talk a little bit about you. What else do you like to do outside of marketing?

 

Shiri Silkin: 16:35

Um, music usually. It’s usually the music with my music studio, with teaching, the time is not so much now that I moved to Israel, but usually that is more, you know, more or less I focus on obviously going out and all with the shopping and everything, but I usually do like to focus on that.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 16:50

Wait, so tell me more about that. So you’re in Israel and you’re still teaching music?

 

Shiri Silkin: 16:53

I’m in Israel. I don’t know. So I was saying that I used to do that when I lived in London. Then I got married, moved to Israel. And I don’t. I don’t actually teach right now just because I haven’t really had the second to. But my music studio, more or less, you know, is also still trying to get my name out there. Uh anyone who knows me, I have a studio. So, but I do, but I do do recordings.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 17:14

What type of music do you play?

 

Shiri Silkin: 17:15

Piano and guitar.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 17:17

Very cool. And do you write your own songs?

 

Shiri Silkin: 17:18

Well, I started a little bit, but my husband usually does that job.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 17:22

Cool. That’s awesome. So do you guys play music together?

 

Shiri Silkin: 17:24

Yeah, sometimes.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 17:25

Very cool. That’s so nice.

 

Shiri Silkin: 17:27

Yeah, that’s my other focus.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 17:29

All right. So if listeners want to connect with you or follow you on your journey, where would be the best place to do that?

 

Shiri Silkin: 17:35

Probably email.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 17:36

Okay, because if they want to hear because you’re not really on social media, right?

 

Shiri Silkin: 17:39

I’m not on social media. I don’t want social media. I usually email’s probably the best. And if they want to hear anything about audio, then I’ve recommended people to the course. I’ve recommended eight people to the course, and every single one of them have taken it, and every single one of them has had positive feedback, and some of them are definitely looking for jobs, and some of them have gotten jobs. You know, I took the course I think maybe two years ago now, and eight people have taken it and they’re already enjoying it from what I see. So if you want to know anything about audio, you can ask me.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 18:09

Very cool. Anything else that you want to talk about or anything else that you want to say?

 

Shiri Silkin: 18:14

Yeah, just keep going. Keep working hard. If you’ll do an audio course, I’m telling you that the light bulb will turn on. No question.

 

Danny Gavin (Host): 18:21

Lovely. All right, cool. Shiri, thank you so much for sharing your story and being so open about your journey. I think conversations like this are incredibly important because they show what a career transition into digital marketing really looks like. The uncertainty, the learning curve, and the growth that comes with it. If you’re listening and considering a move into digital marketing, I hope Shiri’s experience gives you clarity, confidence, and a reminder that you don’t need a traditional background to get started. You just need curiosity, commitment, and the willingness to learn. If you want to explore more stories like this or learn more about Odeo Academy and how it helps people build real-world digital marketing skills from the ground up, be sure to check out Odeoacademy.com. Thanks for tuning in to the Digital Marketing Mentor. We’ll see you next time.