Welcome, you’re on a good path. Free, local setups with n8n Community and LM Studio are very doable, even without a coding background.
Connecting n8n to LM Studio
Most “it doesn’t work” problems here are connection issues:
http://localhost:1234/v1. Any dummy API key works. localhost points to the container, not your PC. Use http://host.docker.internal:1234/v1 instead.
Making the scraper less painful
Replacing SerpAPI
Google Custom Search is a reasonable swap, with a free tier of about 100 queries per day. Google has been tightening access to that API, so check that you can still create a new key before building around it. A good fully free alternative is self-hosting SearXNG, which gives you unlimited search with no key.
How to get unstuck faster
When something breaks, paste the exact error message and which node it happened in. That’s usually enough for someone to point you to the fix. I also found this guide on AI workflow automation useful for understanding how the pieces fit together: AI Workflow Automation: Examples, Benefits & Implementation
What does the scraper do right now, and what error are you seeing? Also, which social media template are you using?
Key takeaway: Get one small piece working at a time (LM Studio connection, then scraping, then search), and the rest gets much easier.