Exposure.com posted an interview with me today. Here's an excerpt:

Imagine starting your first company at the age of 16. Imagine gracing such prestigious magazine covers as Small Business Fortune and Success. Imagine running a million dollar company before you were even old enough to drink. This super whiz kid Ryan Allis sat down with Exposzure and filled us in on how he got started, what it takes to be successful, and his high expectations for the future. Do you still think you’re too young to get that work permit? Let’s ask ourselves what were we doing at 16?

Exp: Would you please tell us what your businesses entail?

Ryan: My first company was called Virante, and Virante is still around today here in Durham. It provides web based marketing and search engine optimization consulting services. It’s a six person firm. My first venture called iContact, is an email marketing and blogging software company, that was started in 2003, and is based in Durham North Carolina and has 62 employees as of today. There are about 12,000 customers that utilize iContact to make it really easy to send out email newsletters, surveys, auto responders, blogs, and RSS feeds.

Exp: Is it correct that you started your first business at the age of 16?

Ryan: Yes, I got started in business at the age of 11 doing computer help for senior citizens on the west coast of Florida. I got into website design at the age of 14 and then started a sole proprietorship called Virante for design and development at the age of 16, and ran that for a couple of years by myself mainly as a consultant until I founded Virante and incorporated it in 2002.

Exp: Did you teach yourself web design?

Ryan: Yes I did.

Exp: What does a normal day of work consist of for you?

Ryan: I spend probably 25% of my time with H.R. making sure existing employees have what they need to do their jobs. I spend probably 25% of my day on marketing trying to figure out how to acquire more customers. 25% of my day is spent on long term strategic planning, and 25% of the day is spent on ensuring that we the funds necessary to operate the company, and that is mainly through building relationships with investment firms, banks, and venture capitalists.

Exp: How much is travel apart of your business?

Ryan: I spend probably 5 days a month on the road. On average we do attend 1 trade show a month. We don’t have a direct sales force, so we don’t travel as much as other larger enterprises might. It is definitely a part of being an entrepreneur though.

Exp: Since you started your business at the age of 16, have you encountered a lot of adversity, or has it been smooth sailing?

Ryan: I would say that there are certainly challenges and adversity that everyone faces as they try to reach the goals that they have set for themselves. I had to overcome the challenges of being young and inexperienced, although that sometimes is a benefit because often you don’t know what you cant do, so therefore you do it. It has certainly been challenging, but I have been able to build a great team around me, and that great group of people has made it as painless as possible to learn, grow, and figure out how to build a great company that is backed by both great investors, as well as rock solid individuals.