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Internet Marketing - The New Gold Rush?

Updated on July 31, 2009
Modern prospector: looking for Garnets, Gemtree, Northern Territory Australia: Photo: Lissie
Modern prospector: looking for Garnets, Gemtree, Northern Territory Australia: Photo: Lissie

Gold Rush: Internet Marketing?

Basically the traditional gold rush sees a huge a number of people moving to and staking a claim in a new area. Famous gold rushes such as America's California Gold rush or Australia's Victorian gold rush had serious long-term economic and social consequences for their countries. As a result of Victoria's gold rush convict transportation was stopped and the Australian Labor Party was born from the miner's Eureka Stockade rebellion.

In 1851 Melbourne, the only town near the initial gold discoveries in Victoria had a population of around 29,000. In July of that year gold was discovered. By 1854 the population was 129,000: within 3 years Melbourne's population had doubled and then doubled again. In an era when the sailing clipper was the fastest way to travel, and Australia was at the end of the civilized world.

A small free-settler town was suddenly inundated by gold seekers: men literally abandoned their families and walked to Melbourne and the gold fields. They weren't miners: they didn't know how to pan for gold, but they had heard about the fortunes to be made in the gold fields.

Another town built on mining: Trades Hall, Broken Hill, NSW, Australia Photo:Lissie
Another town built on mining: Trades Hall, Broken Hill, NSW, Australia Photo:Lissie

Internet Entrepreneurs join the rush

So today's Internet entrepreneurs aren't dropping their families and walking hundred's kilometres to the gold fields? Not at all; they stay at home and spend countless hours and possibly thousands of dollars chasing the elusive on-line (US) dollar - that's different, isn't it?

What drove those old-time gold rush pioneers: did they go to build a new colony or learn new skills. No, they went to make a quick buck. Today's Internet wannabes are different, aren't they?

According to Wikipedia: Gold rushes were typically marked by a general buoyant feeling of a "free for all" in income mobility, in which any single individual might become abundantly wealthy almost instantly ... it is now applied generally to denote any capitalist economic activity in which the participants aspire to race each other in common pursuit of a new and apparently highly lucrative market, often precipitated by an advance in technology

That sounds like the "make money online" industry to me.

  • Everyone is very excited about the chance to make 10,000's, of dollars, a week - check!

  • Everyone expects to be making at least 1,000 in the first week or two - check!

  • There are heaps of stories in the media about the 12 year olds who have already made a fortune - check!

  • Its a once in a life-time opportunity, act now, avoid missing out - check!

What are the Economics of a Gold Rush?

During the gold rush Victoria had few banks, less law and order and absolutely no infra-structure to support this huge population influx. Melbourne would have struggled to deal with the new comers, accommodation would have been stretched to the limit.

What happens to an economy when demand suddenly increases: the shortages and price rises. Who wins that economic game? The prospectors flooding in to find their gold or those who are supplying the services they need? I

n the gold fields men died from dangerous working conditions, disease and suicide. Most gave up and went home. A few found their nugget: their stories became part of the country's folklore, in turn encouraging new punters to chase their own piece of the action. Some people did however make a fortune and set themselves up for life.

The best chance of making a fortune on the gold fields wasn't by chasing gold. The winners were those who supplied the prospectors. The people who make real money in a gold rush are the ones who supply services which are suddenly in huge demand In Australia and California they were the publicans, the blacksmiths (for those picks and pans), the vegetable growers, the water supply contractors, the brothel owners.

Guess which prospectors paid the most for their tools, bought unnecessary equipment and paid over the odds for inferior workmanship - yes the one's just arrived at the gold fields

Surviving the On-line Gold Rush

How to survive this modern day gold rush? Unless you happen to already be an on-line marketer or SEO expert then you probably one of the vulnerable prospectors: seeking that holy grail: a fortune beyond imagining: or at least a work from home opportunity which can give them thousands of dollars income for a 30 minutes work a day.

Should you give up now knowing that most most prospectors fail - not at all, at least you don' t have to risk everything on this venture: unlike most off-line businesses you don't need significant capital to make money on-line, you don't even have to give up your day job. Unlike the old-time gold prospectors your life isn't on the line here.

Know who will exploit you in the Internet Marketing Boom

Realise that in the middle of a gold rush: you are at the bottom and you are the one most vulnerable to being sold the left handed hammer to go with that shoddy pick: or the up-sell on the membership-only site for $29.95 a month when all you thought you were buying was the $9.95 E-Book (normal price $39.95).

Be cynical: be very cynical: if someone offers you something too good to be true: it is: he's the guy telling you that the streets in California are paved with gold.

If you are told you have to act NOW to secure this "once only special price just for you": walk away. Don't be bullied.

Don't believe that it's easy, that anyone can do it: it will take time to learn new skills and time to apply those skills: if you decided to become a plumber how long would it take? Why should internet marketing take any less time?

What's more valuable than Gold?

Remember things change very quickly in gold rush. Kalgoorlie is a mining town west of Perth, Western Australia. When gold was discovered in the 1890's., it was lacking something very important, water, there is no water there. As the prospectors came the price of water was more than its weight in gold.

A far-sighted engineer persuaded the government to back a crazy scheme to pipe water from Perth: over 530km (330 miles) and 400m BELOW Kalgoorile. They said it couldn't be done, it was and that pipeline still supplies Kalgoorlie's water. What happened when that first water flowed: the price of water dropped from 3 pounds / 1000 gallons to 3 shillings and 6 pence. What happened to the man with the contract to ship the water into town on the railway? I suspect he went broke.

That pipeline took over 6 years to build - on the Interent techniques that worked 6 months ago can be obsolete by the time you discover them: don't be conned into buying shares in the water supply business while the pipeline is under construction!

Summary

Do people make money online ? Definitly. Do people make a good living online? Yes but far fewer. Can you make a living online - I have no idea but I don't see why not if you are prepared to put some work in to learn the ropes.

Should you buy the $99.95 E-Book to tell you how to do it - DEFINITLY NOT.

What's your experience of the new wild west : drop me a comment below I'd love to here from you. If you enjoyed this article please give me a "thumbs up" below too!

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