Paid $180 for a "barber SEO guru" course and got nothing but old blog posts

So I run a small two chair shop in Ohio and I wanted more walk ins, so I dropped $180 on this online course from some guy on Instagram who promised a full client flow system. Turned out it was just 12 videos of him reading his own blog posts from like 2019, nothing about Google Maps or local ads at all. I asked for a refund and he blocked me the same day, so that money is gone. What actually works for me is just posting fresh cut photos twice a week on my shop page plus asking every happy client for a review that mentions the service by name. Got 9 new bookings in a month that way, zero dollars spent. If you are thinking about paying for a marketing course, ask them to show you the actual lessons first. What has gotten you guys real local clients without burning cash?