Million Dollar Grind

Ashley Qualls started her hobby designing websites at the ripe old age of 9.  She taught herself how to program using HTML in the kitchen on her family’s Gateway computer.  At 14, Ashley launched  whateverlife.com (with $8 that her mom gave her to buy the domain name) as a portfolio of pictures and graphics that she created.  Shortly after she launched her website, Ashley figured out how to customize MySpace pages and began posting layouts on her site.  By 2005 she needed her own dedicated server to support the traffic to her site.

Because she could not afford the web hosting fees on her babysitting income, Ashley bartered her site designs for free web hosting.   When the traffic to her site increased, her web host suggested that she use Google AdSense to generate revenue.  Her first paycheck from ad sales was $2,790, of which $600 went towards a shopping spree with her BFF, Bre.

As MySpace became more popular, so did Ashley’s site.  In 2006, Ashley dropped out of high school to cultivate her online business.  Despite of what other people thought, Ashley knew she had to take the opportunity to see how far she could take her business.

Since MySpace users changed their page layouts almost daily, demand for new and creative page layouts were high.  In June 2007 “MySpace layouts” was ranked in the top 30 search items on Google.  While being 17 would pose as a disadvantage to other business owners, it was advantageous for Ashley.  She could easily supply the needs of her target audience, since she was already a part of it.

Whateverlife attracts more than 7 million unique visitors (60 million page views) a month, generating around $70,000 a month in ad revenue. Her site ranked higher than Oprah’s!  In less than two years Ashley made over $1 million dollars from ad sales.  Today, Whateverlife goes beyond just MySpace page designs.  The site now offers cell phone wall paper for .99 cents a download and features an online magazine.  Her ads also go beyond google adsense to include ads from valueclick and nabbr.

Ashley’s success can be attributed to jumping on the MySpace bandwagon at the right time, by supplying quality page designs and online tutorials.  Turning a hobby into a million dollar business proves that age really ain’t nothing but a number.