Life’s strange, isn’t it? One day, you’re just going about your business, and then – BAM! You get caught in a whirlwind you never saw coming. This time, the whirlwind was named “YouTube promotion”. Yes, that’s right – YouTube promotion! Here’s the wild story of how I tried to boost my YouTube channel, only to end up with a surprise that threw my weekend off the tracks.

So, here’s how it all started: I have a YouTube channel where I share my adventures driving to photoshoots. I’m that person who loves to drive, capturing every twist and turn with my phone (yep, no fancy dashcam, just my good ol’ smartphone on a phone holder). I even have a playlist for these videos called “Driving”, which features everything from quick time-lapses to longer videos where I share the whole journey. I had a few subscribers, but of course, I wanted more eyes on my videos. So, naturally, I thought, “Let’s test YouTube promotion.”

Hah. Silly me, always trying new things. So, last Saturday, I set up a low-budget YouTube ad campaign, just enough to get a feel for it. I wasn’t expecting a miracle – just wanted to see if there were other people out there who’d enjoy my driving videos. I mean, I’ve got a whopping 148 videos in the playlist, including short clips, longer ones, and even some time-lapse videos of my drives around Belgium. Did I spend hours perfecting the details? Nope. No fancy thumbnails, no info cards – I was just happy to share my “vlogs” (or “video blogs”, as I like to call them) with the world.

Day One: A Slow Start

Saturday rolled around, and I saw a few views and a couple of new subscribers – nothing earth-shattering. But hey, progress is progress, right? So, on Sunday, I threw a few more euros at the campaign and went on with my day, expecting a few more casual views. Life was chill.

Day Two: A Budget Blunder

And then… THEN. Late Sunday, just as I was about to drift off, I decided to check on my YouTube promotion one last time. And there it was – my budget had ballooned to five times my initial four-day budget. In just two days! Panic mode: activated.

My heart was racing, and I was frantically trying to figure out how to stop or at least pause this runaway campaign. I scoured my Google Ads account for a way to hit the brakes. Nothing. In a state of complete panic, I fired off two urgent emails to Google Ads support, practically shouting, “Help! My budget is running wild!” Just as I hit “send” on the second email, I stumbled across a little note about “overdelivery” and “invalid activity”.

The Mystery of Adjustments

Apparently, Google Ads has a quirky little feature where if your campaign overshoots its budget due to some glitch – like bots clicking your video, accidental human clicks, or simply “overdelivery” – they won’t charge you above your set budget. Instead, they issue “adjustments”. What are adjustments, you ask? Well, these are credits or corrections to your account, like:

• Invalid Activity: Clicks from bots or accidental clicks by humans
• Overdelivery: When a campaign spends more than its daily budget (yes, this happens!)
• Overrun: When spending goes beyond your account budget

So, long story short, my campaign didn’t actually charge me extra; it just looked like it did. Crisis averted!

Lessons Learned from YouTube Promotion

But here’s what I learned from this little escapade with YouTube promotion:

1. Set a Clear Daily/Total Budget: This is key. If you’re just starting, don’t put in more than you’re willing to lose (or accidentally overspend).
2. Check Your Ads Frequently: Check in on your campaign every day – especially if you’re running a test with a low budget. You never know when things could take an unexpected turn.
3. Watch Out for Overdelivery: Google Ads might run your campaign a bit “enthusiastically”. Thankfully, you won’t be charged over your limit, but it’s still good to be aware.
4. Stay Calm: If you see an unexpected surge in spending, don’t panic. Google Ads has a policy to handle overdelivery and invalid clicks, so you won’t be stuck paying way beyond your budget.

And the Saga Ends… Happily!

I can finally laugh about it now, but it was a tense 15 minutes of sheer panic. At least I learned a few things about YouTube promotion and how it works. Now, my channel has a few extra views, a couple more subscribers, and a great story to tell. I’d call that a success, right?

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Have fun creating!

P.S. Even though I paused the campaign over an hour ago, it’s still running – and my budget is creeping higher and higher! YouTube and Google, can you please hit the brakes already? I know I won’t be billed for this, but watching the budget climb is seriously uncomfortable.