It’s a changing world! Before this recession (or is it a depression?) reared it’s ugly head, I was of the view that all of these economic “ups and downs” were just mere ripples on a pond!

However, this current economic downturn has changed my mind somewhat. Having spent many years supplying the investment banks with IT staff as a recruiter I thought I had an “inside track” on all of this.

However, not even the bankers had the slightest idea that their house of cards was about to come tumbling down. So, if they didn’t know what chance the rest of us?

I remember sitting with the head of an exotics desk in the City of London and being told that his particular bank had (about 4 years ago) made nearly a billion pounds on derivatives…in just one quarter!

He said to me, “if we’re making all of this money, someone must be holding the other end of the stick, I’d hate to see what happens when this all unravels”.

I got an email early last year “It’s unravelling”!

But, why is it different this time?

In my view there are a number of factors coming together to make a “perfect storm” that will ensure that the next 20 years are very different to the 20 that have just passed.

Government spending is out of control. The Western Governments are trying to “buy their way out” of the recession and it will back fire. Government debt is now on an exponential curve upwards and is far too high in terms of multiples of GDP in countries such as the U.K, the U.S and Germany.

World population is expanding to breaking point. We are currently at around 6 billion. It is estimated the world can only cope with just over 8 billion and at current growth rates we’re going to get there in about 12 years.

Food production at current levels of both product and waste (globally we lose 30% of all crops) will not cope, food prices will increase massively again.

Natural resources are running out so prices for energy and the like will also increase hugely over the medium term.

Higher inflation is the only outcome possible! And this eventual outcome is already being exasperated with the West is indulging in some “quantitative easing” (that means printing money) and that will severely damage those economies longer term.

The bottom line at the moment is that the Banking “crisis” has caused people to completely lose faith in Banks, Big Business and certainly Western Governments (although Mr Obama is still in his honeymoon period, but boy does he need to deliver and fast).

Consequently people just do not trust the “day job” model to support them any more.

As I have spent over 20 years of my life dealing with people’s careers, they tend to “look me up” if they want advice on such issues.>

My ‘phone has been ringing hot over the last 12 months with people looking for a way out of the “rat race”. The reason for most of them is because their pensions are wrecked and they just do not trust the “day job” model to provide for them any more.

I have had friends leave high level corporate pensions and go drive a taxi, a retail director go painting and decorating and a number of people I know just give up and retire (lucky them).

However, the bulk of people want to take their business idea or product and go online.

This is, in my opinion, a good move. Amazon U.K posted it’s best Christmas ever, Littlewoods ( a U.K chain store) posted a 68% increase in online sales last year, and…the London Telegraph (buried away in a little corner amongst the doom and gloom) noted online sales generally were 30% up in 2008.>

It’s the place to be!

So, what’s the point of going through all this background?

It’s simply this, most people don’t know how to go about starting an online business.

And, the Internet Marketing “how to” marketers can be their own worst enemy!

Just look at the “IM” market - all the hype, the puff and the boast. Almost every sales letter is full of glitzy marketing and chic sales copy. They promise an income of $108,697 next month…all for a $47 eBook (oh, and don’t forget the 04 cents).

This is simply not the case.

If you have been through the process of setting up an online business you will know there’s a lot to it.

I could list it all out, but I’m sure I don’t need to!

Internet Marketing is like any other business. There is a set of key skills that need to be learned and mastered before you can be a success.

So why is it people get seduced by the hype and think on $37 product can make them a millionaire?

I guess it’s the promise of easy untold riches, which is even more alluring in these uncertain times. I’ll freely admit I was the same when I first started to explore the possibilities of making my living online.

However, it has become my view that this hype needs to be stripped away. The smoke and mirrors need to be removed and a new honesty needs to wash through the Internet Marketing world.

Yes, there are some great products out there, but very few take you by the hand and lead you from start to finish, and the ones that, on the whole do that, are hugely expensive.

A lot of great information is given away free these days. I applaud this. The recent hyped up re-launch of Butterfly Marketing by Mike Filsaime for just the price of shipping is a good example.

It’s a great product at $29.97! But, let’s be honest, the hype was totally over the top.

Yes, I did buy, but I am experienced and the product is a good addition to my knowledge base.

However, how many of the 15,000 people that got their hands on the product will actually use it?

They’ll be all excited the day it arrives, rip it open, read the manuscript, realise the software needs a bit of effort and it will get left on the side in 99.9% of cases.

And, there are far too many “how to IM” products launched that lack substance, that are old information re-hashed or padded out fluff. Sadly the hyped up marketing get’s these products sold, by the bucket load at inflated prices.

The list is as long as the people who have lost money in this current crisis.

So, to sum up, these are dark times and massive change is happening – NOW.

People want to take their destiny into their own hands, live their lives on their own terms.

Online is still thriving but the IM “how to market” could do with a real dose of honesty to help those people take control of their destiny.

Wouldn’t it be nice to see some IM products give an honest appraisal of what they can and can’t do? It does what it says on the box!

I am going to go on a crusade to bring non-hyped up, quality information to people who genuinely want to learn how to win the online game!

I got one of my hubs The Google Adwords Guide on to page 1, position 2 of Google for the term “basic google adwords guide”, don’t you think other aspiring online marketers would like to know how to do that?

No hype, no BS, just honest values at a reasonable price. Who say “AYE”?

If you have any questions or comments you want to add, please do so I check here regularly and will be only to glad to answer your questions.