2 Google Ads Lessons Learned from a Recent Running Injury

Recently, I started to feel pain in my Achilles tendon while running. Like most runners, I ignored it. I just kept right on running like there was nothing to worry about. That is of course until that fateful day when my Achilles was too sore to walk normally without pain. When you can’t walk, then you can’t run so that meant I was officially injured. :(

I’m not telling you this for sympathy. In fact, I’m almost fully recovered at this point. The reason for this story is because there are two very important lessons that can be directly applied to managing Google Ads campaigns. The first one you can probably guess because it’s what got me into trouble. The second has to do with my recovery, or turnaround, which is equally important whenever you’re faced with problems in an ad campaign. In this article, I’ll take a closer look at these two lessons so you can avoid costly mistakes, and make sure you keep your ad campaigns off of the injury reserve list. Lesson #1. Pain Is Our Best Coach The first lesson is that pain is our best coach. This is especially true with running. If your form is not correct, then you’ll eventually start to feel pain somewhere in your body. It might be your feet, knees, back, shins, hips, or something else. The pain is a crystal clear signal that you’re doing something wrong! If you continue to run the same way, then you’ll eventually end up like me when I couldn’t even walk normally. There’s no coach in this world better than the pain signals in your body. If you pay attention and then make the appropriate adjustments, then you’ll remain injury free. Those are two big “if’s,” I know. Guess what, the same is true when advertising. Except you’re not going to feel physical pain (unless you punch a wall), you’re going to feel financial pain. Hey, I hate losing money as much as you, but there’s really no substitute when it comes to motivation than watching a few dollars exit your bank account. Again, that’s a clear signal you’re doing something wrong! With running, pain is the trigger to closely analyze your form, revisit your training program to make sure it’s appropriate for your fitness level, and then start testing to find a way to run pain-free. With Google Ads, financial pain means you need to closely analyze your entire sales path, revisit your budget, and start testing to find a way to get profitable. You’ll notice I didn’t say that pain means you stop. That brings us to lesson number two…

Lesson #2. The Fastest Road to Recovery is NOT Rest There have been countless studies that prove rest and immobilization does not encourage recovery after an injury. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. If you completely stop working out, then your injury will linger and you may never fully heal. When I was struggling to walk, I started a fairly intense physical therapy program that included strength training and even light running. My body reacted by rebuilding the injured area, and I was able to get back on my marathon training program. The lesson here is simple. Problems in Google Ads campaigns are about as common as running injuries. Eventually, you’re going to experience some pain. When that happens, remember that the fastest road to recovery is NOT to turn the campaign off completely. Sure, you will likely need to pause for a few days to analyze the situation and lay out a new plan of attack. Then, once you have your rehab program, you should turn your ads back on and get your campaign on the road to recovery!