Weekend is approaching and I am back with 5th inspirational interview. This weekend I am interviewing a young affiliate marketer who became idol for many young bloggers.
Hope you are enjoying BCIS (Blogging Cage Interview Series) and going to be with me for a long journey.
In my starting days I came across his blog SmartBloggerz, and I remember exactly that this was the very first Indian blog which I came to know. His blog is one of the top authority blog and many affiliate marketers keep giving their tips on his blog in guest posts.
Sushant is one of the Young Millionaire from India who earned this money on internet.
Let’s have talk with him and know how he made it.
Sushant Please tell us about yourself.
Hello BloggingCage readers, I’m Sushant Risodkar – the founder of SmartBloggerz. I’m 19 yrs. old, living with my family in Indore city. I’m into blogging and affiliate marketing field from past 3-4 years now and have developed immense experience in it as well as achieved remarkable milestones in past one year.
Tell us about your educational background.
For Indians: “Mai barwi pass hun bhaiya 
” Jokes apart, I’ve completed my high school graduation and currently pursuing BCA (it’s my second year right now).
In which year you entered in blogging and how you started?
I don’t remember this exactly every time I’m asked about it, but my memory says it was maybe 2008 or 2009 I began playing with blogs. In beginning, I started some random blogs on blogspot with content scrapped from here and there just to make money with adsense. I had some 40-50 contacts in my yahoo messenger with whom I used to exchange adsense clicks.
Then later I understood the real concept of professional blogging and how to actually profit from it which led to opening of my blog on blogspot called ‘templatestreasure.blogspot.com’ where I used to share blogger templates and coding for blogspot platform with random stuff in-between.
It was quite a success and earned me good money that time which helped me switch to what you know me for: SmartBloggerz.
You were listed at Retireat21 as top young bloggers in the World, How that helped you to improve your business/blogging?
When Michael listed me as top young bloggers in world, I was completely amazed and wondered “Am I Really?” But I was really happy to see that he noticed some spark in me … It gave me good exposure in blogosphere, my traffic spiked up, I received few advertisement requests etc. It was really a great moment to have been listed on his blog as he is recognized as one of the most popular young blogger and entrepreneur.
Check - http://www.retireat21.com/blogging/young-bloggers-making-money-online
When you entered in Affiliate Marketing and how much time you took to earn your first dollar?
I think it was 2011, I started looking for ways to diversify business as I wasn’t enjoying making money from my blog just by selling ads and sponsored posts. I thought about doing something different.
First I thought about selling services (link building, writing etc.) but then I realized that I won’t be able to manage my schedule so I picked up the other popular route of making money online: affiliate marketing. The first thing I sold as an affiliate marketer was probably hostgator’s web hosting package but I don’t remember exactly how much time I took.
What you did with that money?
Uhmm, I think I bought web hosting for my blog SmartBloggerz as it was hosted on blogger platform when it first started.
Many people have assumption that affiliate marketing is easy and this is the most lucrative business online. According to you how difficult or easy it is and how lucrative it is.
If you have a friend, who is playing games all the time, to start making money with affiliate marketing then he will definitely need about 2-3 months or so to properly understand the whole idea of this business on his OWN like using web hosting, blogs, basic html, SEO etc.!
BUT, if you give him personal guidance and some good training material then it becomes a bit easier for him.
Personally, if I teach any of my friends the exact steps I use to make money then he will make first dollar within 7 days. So, my point is that affiliate marketing is easy if one gets proper guidance and good training material to follow.
Affiliate marketing is quite lucrative and one could easily earn 4 to 5-figures income (in USD) from it every month.
Which products you promote most? And which are the sources from where you got information about such products.
I mostly promote internet marketing related products and I get jv partnership emails on regular basis for upcoming products as I have established connections with several internet marketers.
Please explain little about affiliate marketing. Is it about making niche sites for every product or promote them all by writing reviews about them?
Well it’s not limited to that. Affiliate marketing basically means driving traffic to your affiliate link through any possible way (allowed by affiliate program’s tos) you know; like ppc, emails, twitter spamming, social networks, popups etc. Email Marketing wherein you promote affiliate offers and writing reviews about product works best according to me and that’s how I mostly make income online.
Which are the methods you use to drive traffic on such sites? Please tell us FREE as well as paid methods you use for driving traffic.
Well the free method is none other than Google. I optimize my sites so it ranks well for buyer keywords. Also I try to interlink web properties and boost their ranking as well so that it’s all me who conquers Google hahahahaha (devil laugh).
The web properties I’m referring to are YouTube, Dailymotion, Slideshare, Authorstream, twitter account, Facebook fan page, Pinterest page etc. I simply put my link to review sites on these web properties and bring in whole lot of free targeted traffic. I don’t use paid methods on regular basis; just for experiment purpose I use popup traffic and mobile ads.
How blogging changed your life and how much changes you are seeing in yourself in these 2-3 years?
Well it changed BIG time. I used to live on pocket money which wasn’t so good honestly speaking The family income was mainly for fulfilling basic amenities since I come from middle class background. But because of blogging & affiliate marketing, I started enjoying a kind-of independent life as I started handling all my expenses from the money I earned. I turned chocoholic because of it and started spending too much on chocolates and fast food. Brought my own bike, several gadgets, car etc. It’s been an awesome changeover for me in these last 2-3 years.
Which was the happiest moment in blogging?
There were several, I can’t put one above the other. But the first one was when I got $19 in my PayPal account by selling entrecard credits on my blog. This was like my first income which helped me in buying my own domain (smartbloggerz.com)
How much money you are making with affiliates?
I cannot disclose the exact figure but my earning keeps fluctuating between 4-5 figure.
What are your future plans? Are we going to see any paid affiliate marketing course from you?
Well, personally I don’t have any such plans right now of having my own product. It’s time consuming and I’m a lazy guy My future plan is to continue what I’m doing right now as well as complete my college graduation properly. Later I’m thinking of doing MBA.
How it feels when people call you Young Millionaire?
It feels really good that I have achieved such big thing so quickly, my parents are happy and most importantly I’m recognized for something. It will definitely help me in future always.
Message for my readers.
Have Faith, Stay Focused & Fly With It! If you have not achieved something impressive yet, don’t worry, there will be a time when you will achieve something bigger than me. Don’t quit or be lazy in your work until you have achieved something big. Set your goals high.
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About Kulwant Nagi
Kulwant Nagi is a 25 years old Full-Time Blogger from Haryana, India. He Loves to write about SEO, WordPress and Blogging. Blogging Cage is a webmasters blog where you will learn blogging and SEO Tips. 
Really Awesome interview ..Kulwant …Got some idea of Affiliate Marketing. Can you give me more stuff where I will get the whole idea ..Thanks a lot ..
Thanks for dropping comment here.
Kulwant Nagi recently posted..After the Deadline: WordPress Spell Checking Plugin
How nice to see Sushant featured here – and to see that he’s continued to succeed with his blogging business over the years. Which reminds me, I probably owe him a few comments over at SmartBloggerz – at least if he’s kept that dratted plug-in out of them!
Oh, yes…I remember.
Holly Jahangiri recently posted..A Month-Long Rest and Rebellion
First of all most welcome at Blogging Cage.
Holly, I am following him from a long time and learnt too much from the experts on his blog. He is learning the things and continuously putting them into action.
Good to hear that you are also one of the SmartBloggerz readers. I would love to see you here again.
Kulwant Nagi recently posted..BCIS 5: Sushant Risodkar; A Young Boy Making 4 Figure/Month
You might say Sushant encouraged my contesting addiction. I also have a lovely pocketwatch customized with a picture of my children that I won over on his site. It’s still one of my favorite prizes.
Holly Jahangiri recently posted..#28Acts of Kindness
wowwwwww !!
So you were one of the lucky winners.
Kulwant Nagi recently posted..BCIS 5: Sushant Risodkar; A Young Boy Making 4 Figure/Month
Yes – several years ago. New Year’s Eve, 2009 – you can see the watch here: http://jahangiri.us/new/2010/03/04/54-68-61-6e-6b-20-79-6f-75/
Holly Jahangiri recently posted..Hardcore
Wohooooo !! It’s awesome.
Kulwant Nagi recently posted..5 Ingredients of Successful Blogging
Ahhhhh finally his interview. I remember his initial posts are all about blogger ( his blogging birthplace
). But still, a lot of things to learn for us in the field of affiliate marketing. We hope Sushant would help us in some way or other 
HIMANSHU KHANNA recently posted..Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani Official Poster | Ranbir and Deepika as lead
Himanshu Every blogger have same old story that he/she started with blogger blog.
But now Sushant is a established blogger and his identity is as an authority blogger from India.
Kulwant Nagi recently posted..BCIS 5: Sushant Risodkar; A Young Boy Making 4 Figure/Month
Really inspirational interview kulwant bro! I haven’t any knowledge about affiliate marketing and trying to learn how it actually works??
All the best Sushant for future!
keep posting such great interview
NEERAJ recently posted..Lava Iris 502 at Price of Rs. 8490 in India
Another motivating interview. Such people will never let me sleep. Kulwant thanks for sharing with us.
Yogesh Vashist recently posted..Create SEO Strategy Based On Customers’ Needs
Sushant, Thanks for sharing your great thoughts here. You are one of my favorite blogger. Really you helped me lot in initial days of my blogging career.
Lakhyajyoti recently posted..How to Use Paid Windows 8 Apps for Free
Hope Sushant will bring any course in market soon to teach us affiliate marketing.
Kulwant Nagi recently posted..After the Deadline: WordPress Spell Checking Plugin
It’s great for me because I am reading your blog about how we should start our career in blogging life and you describe each and every things very clearly which will help a lot to maintain good reputation in blogging field and no doubt in that there are so many things to learn you just only need to give some time to blogging.
Sam recently posted..India Trips
Thanks for this. As I am also looking more for affiliate income this post will be definitely helpful for me.
Keep updating great stuffs Kulwant
Keep visiting us on every Saturday for such great interviews.
Kulwant Nagi recently posted..After the Deadline: WordPress Spell Checking Plugin
Nice Interview Kulwant bro. and i am impressed from sushant as he got good success at a very less age.
Ravi budhwar recently posted..Singh Vs Kaur (Punjabi) Box Office Collections First Week
Sushant is obviously one of the greatest affiliate marketers from India. I have been reading his blog for a while now, he’s obviously a great marketer aka blogger who knows what he’s doing
. Thanks for this great interview Kulwant.
PrIyAnGsHu recently posted..Affiliate Marketing 101 – Make Money Selling Affiliate Products & Services
Totally Impressed. I think i should start learning thinks from such entrepreneur. One thing that I see, is that one have to work hard for a time say about 2-3 years with a great plan. Then only things work.
sudheer pal recently posted..Elements of web design where people get wrong
Sudheer working hard and smart is the only key to get success. Keep putting your efforts and you will succeed soon.
Kulwant Nagi recently posted..After the Deadline: WordPress Spell Checking Plugin
Hey Sushant you are a great inspiration. Especially to know that you’ve achieved so much at such an younger age and have gained experience is really a wonderful thing. Way to go!
Jane recently posted..6 Ways To Keep Your Relationship As Fresh And Exciting As Your First Date
Inspiring, just like your previous interviews in this section!
Great to see youngsters doing so well in their chosen field. Wishing you both all the best for your future undertakings.
Ambika Choudhary Mahajan recently posted..Cristiano Ronaldo: Flaunt it if you have it- Swanky Cars And Sprawling Mansions
Hello Mr. Young Millionaire
I know how much happiness this statement bought in your life. Stay blessed!
I’m not making any such income which turns me into millionaire but I’m doing great at my niche and through my service of graphic & logo designing.
I have never thought of getting into affiliate market maybe coz I’m a bit lazy like you. But seriously laziness brings nothing, it just ruins your business. As I’m someone who provide services if I turn lazy I’ll loose clients.
Irfan Siddiqui recently posted..DialMyCalls – Taking Communication to a New Level
Irfan, The only secret he has is he didn’t quitted. You also keep learning the things and one day you will overcome him. Always have better vision.
Kulwant Nagi recently posted..BCIS 6: A Talk With Satish Gandham From SwiftThemes.com
Hey bro,
Thanks for these interviews. They help me discover great Indian bloggers. I’m off to Sushant’s site for more.
thanks for the interview
Enstine Muki recently posted..How To Get 1000 Visits A Day From Facebook Groups!
It’s good that you are knowing great Indian minds via my blog. Sushant is on top in affiliate marketing in India.
Kulwant Nagi recently posted..5 Ingredients of Successful Blogging
I know Sushant from year his is my college mate and one of the my best friend,after seeing him I started my own blog and he and my one more friend help me lot in blogging and now I following his way hope I will also achieved my thing.
bhavesh recently posted..smart TV – A Multipurpose innovation
It’s good that you have mentor like Sushant with you. learn the things from him and apply them for better results.
Kulwant Nagi recently posted..BCIS 6: A Talk With Satish Gandham From SwiftThemes.com
Every once in a while I see an earning report screen captured and posted by Sushant at FB, motivates me a lot and that’s why researching on Affiliate Marketing and it’s my goodness I got passed in the very first attempt and that too today only I earned my first ClickBank commission of $24.92 investing just $1.80 dollars on paid traffic.
Hey Kulwant, thanks for interviewing and pushing him again infront of me to boost my motivation level to become a successful affiliate marketer in coming months because I’m also not feeling good selling advertisement specs over there at my various blog.
Thanks for dropping comment and appreciating my efforts Robinsh.
Nice to see such young guys doing a wonderful job! Well, I haven’t heard of him until now. Proud to see Indian bloggers reaching heights.
Kulwanth, you are doing a marvellous job! This is a great service to newbies who can take a lot of inspiration from these mind-blowing success stories. Go on…
MNB Achari recently posted..7 Essential Tips To Boost Your Productivity As a Blogger
I am trying to get the same position but still working hard to get four figure, you guys are so lucky ….
Blogging tips recently posted..The Google’s EMD update
They are not Lucky. They have just put their hard work and did smart work to make money online.
Keep learning new blogging things and soon you will also start making money.
Kulwant Nagi recently posted..20 Most Effective Ways of Doing SEO [InfoGraphics]
Really Nice Tips . it is just awesome stuff i have ever read it inspired me alot i hope i’ll achieve something big one day surely .
An awesome interview…I know one day my interview will be posted all around. Thanks for this interview, I am able to learn some new things all around
Shehu Awwal recently posted..Latest Airtel Free Browsing Cheats For Pc/Phones Using Blackberry BIS Internet Subscription
I feel a very great experience when i read that how a low age person be a successful person for his own hard work . This will give a great inspiration to our young blogger . Thank you for this.
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Hi Kulwant
Thanks for bringing this awesome interview to us, I am feeling really motivated and Sushant’s achievements in Affiliate marketing have set me thinking that why am i so inclined towards CPC and CPM models. I can earn twice the amount with affiliate marketing
but one thing is for sure, Being successful in affiliate marketing needs a lot of loyal following. You need to have such kind of readers who trust you like hell and can buy anything if you recommend it to them even if it is of no use to them (just joking
)
Honestly, I think bloggers have some seniors who are making tons in blogging but actually they forget that the best inspiration for them would be to meet a person who in the same age group and in very less time has achieved a lot it brings kind of jealousy among people and inspires them keep fighting
If he can, then I can and I will
Nishant recently posted..Get More Traffic From Facebook, The Clever Way [Quicktip]
Nishant, this is true that affiliate marketing have too much potential.
As you said, “Being successful in affiliate marketing needs a lot of loyal following.” This is not 100% true in case of affiliate marketing. For getting success in affiliate marketing all you need is proper keyword research and you must know the methods to drive traffic on your niche website.
Once you will be able to do these two things properly, you will start making money.
Never quit is the basic funda for success.
Kulwant Nagi recently posted..20 Most Effective Ways of Doing SEO [InfoGraphics]