FileInfo.com

Not many people can say they’ve been an AdSense partner for 20 years — but then again, not many people have made a site that’s remained relevant and helpful for two decades. Per Christensson started Sharpened Productions in 2003 with the goal of providing useful information about computers and the Internet. His most popular site, FileInfo.com, now provides helpful information about 12,000 file formats, including what type of data the files contain and how to open them.

“We want to help as many people as possible with FileInfo.com,” says Per. “So I decided early on that an ad-supported model would help provide free information to our users while supporting continued development of the website.”

After testing out a few other ad networks, Per turned to AdSense right around the time it launched in 2003. He was immediately taken with the reporting interface, which he found intuitive and easy to navigate.

“I think the way that the AdSense team has designed the user interface is exactly how a publisher would want it to look,” says Per. “I love that AdSense offers easy setup and tracking, while Ad Manager provides added flexibility with third-party and in-house ads.”

Beyond the smooth interface and easy integrations, AdSense also quickly made his site profitable — nearly quadrupling his revenue. As an entirely bootstrapped site that wasn’t relying on external investors, achieving consistent ad revenue was a game-changer.

With money coming in, Per suddenly had the flexibility to leave his job at Apple and devote himself to the site full-time. Now armed with more time on his hands and more revenue to go around, Per was ready to think even bigger about the future of his business.

Whenever Per and his team incorporate ads into their products, they take a thoughtful approach.

“We've always tried to maintain a healthy balance of content and ads,” says Per. “I think our users notice and appreciate that. We don’t force them to buy anything, purchase a subscription, or make donations — so simply supporting our content with ads in a relevant, unobtrusive way we can provide our information for free.”

It seems to be working — users keep coming to FileInfo.com for their file format needs. And they aren’t shy about letting Per and the team know just how much their site helped them safely navigate a tricky file.

Whether it’s a student in Italy calling Per “AMAZING” (yes, in all caps) for helping her with a tricky .zip file, or a satisfied software engineer grateful for the help he found on Per’s Tech Terms glossary, he never gets tired of reading compliments from happy website visitors.

“AdSense has helped Sharpened Productions grow into the company it is today. But revenue has never been my top priority. When I started out, I just wanted to create something meaningful that would help people and make a positive difference in their lives,” says Per. “Two decades later, that’s still our goal. And we want to be the best at what we do. Whenever we publish content on our sites, it needs to be accurate, easy to understand, and helpful to the user. That keeps people coming back.”