Everyone wants to make money online, Ahson Rafiq is no different! Ashon manages the blog http://www.blueverse.com, with a lot of information about Search Engine Marketing and making money online. He is surprisingly young to achieve the success he has, proving that age shouldn’t be a barrier to realizing dreams and ambitions. Here goes the full interview for your enjoyment!

IMOLE: Hi Ahson, thanks for agreeing to participate in my blogs premier interview. I had seen your presence on a few other websites, but it was your recent article on SEOmoz which engaged me enough to hunt you down for some more information, about you, your projects and future ambitions! Please introduce yourself to my readers:

AR: My name is Ahson Rafiq, I’m currently living in Sana’a, Yemen, until I clear my SATs at least, I support myself and am trying to get myself through college and start my designer brand while doing that, making money online is something I got really good at since I started when I was young, so, I thought why not start a blog on every thing I know, I made blueverse and since then, things have progressed alot.

IMOLE: I noticed on your SEOmoz profile you stated that you were only 17 years old, is this correct?

AR: Actually, I started when I was 15.

IMOLE: Wow, having read some of your posts, I can honestly say that you writing gives the impression of someone who is a lot older. What training or experience have you had to really hone those talents?

AR: Trial and error, really.. I taught myself 99% of the things I know, learning something new everyday or just putting up with everything everyday made me really consistent with the happenings, after I got used to it, It was all really easy to learn and progress even more.

IMOLE: I see you are living in Yemen, a place with a rich and diverse history. From a Westerners perspective Yemen is barely mentioned as part of the Middle East. How do you see Yemen and what affect has it had on you?

AR: Yemen? Oh man, this is where I started to shine like never before, I’m known here not only for a good business mind but for my designing as well, I was contacted for sponsorships at least half a dozen times by now, for the designs, t-shirts, skateboards..etc

AR: Yemen, is where I grew up after the death of my dad, my mom raised me by herself.

AR: No matter where I go, Yemen will always play a big role in my life, just an additional note, skaters here have alot of heart, they never give up, that’s what gave me a push to finally start Gurillawww.gurilla.net

IMOLE: And to extend my last question, how has your view of Western Life been influenced by living in this part of the world?

AR: Not that much really, except there isn’t a McDonalds or Chilis anywhere near…I kinda miss all that stuff back home..hah

IMOLE: Having researched your site in Googles, I can see you have nearly 900 pages indexed and a wealth of sites of good authority pointing your way. Firstly, Creating that much content is surely a drain on the brain, what motivates you to keep writing more content, and how freely does the information flow?

AR: Getting what I want basically, If I know it’s gonna pay off at the end, I don’t give up, at all.

IMOLE: And secondly, I know from my own experience trying to build up good backlinks can be a thankless task. How long have you invested in promoting your site, and is there a specific strategy which has really worked for you?

AR: Very, very, very little. I don’t like spending all that much time on projects, it’s better to find new ways on your own, most of my backlinks come through my wordpress themes, which I design myself and have them coded for cheap.

IMOLE: Having seen your Clothing/Skateboarding site gurilla.net, I can see that you’re involved in some creative stuff. I come from a creative background and migrated across to marketing, no doubt at some point I will move back again. What are you more passionate about, the technical aspects of websites and marketing, or letting loose your creative prowess and doing stuff with no boundaries or limitations?

AR: Both actually, Whenever I start a project I have a whole marketing strategy planned out in my head, the technical aspect is way too easy to handle for me, as far as creativity goes, I always manage to turn a few heads when I do what I do.

IMOLE: On your about us page, you mention that you are doing everything you can to get the Gurilla brand off the ground. What is your ultimate objective for the brand and what success have you had to date?

AR: Well, I was approached by alot of people to buy out my designs but I never wanna get sponsored that way..I wanna do it on my won.

AR: As far as success goes, not so much, I launched it like 9 days ago, with a major project of 50 skateboard deck designs within 30 days, alot of hype going on, I can already see the Alexa rank going up, hah. As soon as the skateboard decks are done, I’ll most likely contact a printing company to get these boards out, finally.

IMOLE: I know it is possible to earn a living from a website, however a lot of people believe they can set-up a website and make money by just clicking their fingers. How hard was it for you to start earning money from your blog, and has it given you the freedom to pursue other interests?

AR: Well one website never makes enough money, I own around 200 websites, that’s how I afford to do everything and still have my sanity.

IMOLE: To extend the last question slightly, what has been the best way you have monetized your blog and what role did good website traffic and good content play?

AR: Good content gave me traffic. Sitepoint got me alot of sales.

IMOLE: Do you plan to keep you blog running if the Gurilla brand really takes off?

AR: Well of course, it’s not just a blog, it’s my voice. But if I get into a situation when I have to give it all to Gurilla, then maybe yea, I’ll be forced to sell off the blog.

IMOLE: What other plans do you have for the future? I read you were going to college, if this is still the case, what are you looking to study and how will those skills shape your future projects?

AR: I already got accepted into NYU but I still need time to prepare for my SATs. After that, I’ll need even more time to study for college…so I’m not sure about that part at all. I’m gonna go for an MBA.

IMOLE: Lastly, are there any other projects you are involved in at the moment that we should keep an eye out on, whether individually or as part of a collaboration?

AR: Well, I never do collabs, I believe that If I can’t do it myself, then, I shouldn’t do it at all, heh.

AR: Currently, Im working on: AskTeens, Gossip Forums - This is more of a SEO research project, I want to see how much I can get into the major serps for this, Lookin’ Gewd - This is my research site for what ages by what, this is for some extra cash and some really nice research as well, this will help me work better with Gurilla in the future, and ofcourse Gurilla.

IMOLE: Thanks for your time Ahson, and good luck with your endeavours! I think it is fair to say, that when people are fully motivated then all you need is hard work to get things done.

SEO TIP: What is also interesting about the interview is Ahson’s way of creating backlinks, through template designs. For anyone with artistic skill, good templates will often keep a “designed by…” credit on them, creating a free link to your site. No doubt this text can be optimized too, using great keywords within the anchor text. This can double as a money making tool, as many templates can be sold for a small cost, given you or your site both financial and search engine benefits.