Google Tag Manager (GTM): Simplifying Website Tracking and Management

• Contest Factory
• August 22, 2023

Simplifying Website Tracking and Management with Google Tag Manager

Google Tag Manager (GTM) is a powerful tool designed to simplify the process of managing and deploying various tracking codes and tags on your website without the need for manual code implementation. GTM streamlines the tracking process, making it more efficient, organized, and flexible for marketers and website administrators. It also reduces the load of code on your site, keeping it lighter and faster loading. Be sure to plan what you want to track before starting this process, then you’ll be set for starting your set up.

Check out the GA4 Guide to help you decide what you want to track>>

Centralizing Tracking for Agencies

Google Tag Manager (GTM) plays a crucial role in facilitating collaboration among multiple agencies working on a single website or digital project. It offers a seamless solution to manage and implement various tracking codes, scripts, and tags from different stakeholders in a controlled and organized environment. Here’s how GTM enables multiple agencies to work harmoniously within the same environment and ensures a conflict-free, centralized repository for tags:

1. Centralized Management: GTM provides a centralized platform where all agencies can collaboratively manage and deploy tags without the need to directly modify the website’s code. This central hub ensures that all tracking codes are organized and controlled in one place.

2. Container Approach: GTM operates on a container-based system, allowing you to create different containers for various websites or projects. Each container can have its set of tags, triggers, and variables. This compartmentalized structure helps prevent conflicts between agencies and keeps their respective tracking codes separate.

3. User Access Control: GTM offers role-based user access control, allowing you to assign specific permissions to different agency team members. This means that agencies can access and modify only the tags and settings relevant to their tasks, ensuring data security and minimizing the risk of accidental changes.

4. Version Control and Preview Mode: GTM’s version control feature enables agencies to work on different versions of the same container simultaneously. This prevents conflicts and ensures that changes made by one agency do not interfere with the work of another. Additionally, the Preview mode allows agencies to test their changes before deploying them live, reducing the chances of errors.

5. Collaboration and Communication: GTM’s collaborative environment encourages agencies to communicate effectively and coordinate their efforts. Agencies can leave comments within GTM to explain their changes, share insights, and discuss any potential issues.

6. Tag Templates and Customization: GTM provides tag templates for popular marketing tools and platforms, making it easier for agencies to implement common tags without extensive coding knowledge. Agencies can also create custom tags tailored to their specific needs, enhancing flexibility and control.

7. Real-Time Updates: Once a tag is deployed within GTM, it becomes active on the website in real time. This means that changes made by one agency can be instantly reflected across the site, reducing the need for back-and-forth communications, and ensuring consistent data tracking.

8. Error Detection and Debugging: GTM offers a debugging console that helps agencies identify and troubleshoot issues with tags. This feature aids in detecting errors and resolving them swiftly, minimizing disruptions and ensuring accurate data collection.

9. Continuous Monitoring and Optimization: With GTM, agencies can continuously monitor the performance of tags and adjust settings based on data insights. This collaborative approach to optimization helps achieve better results for the website’s overall digital strategy.

Container: The Heart of Google Tag Manager

A “container” in GTM is a virtual space that holds all the tags, triggers, and variables you use to manage website tracking. It acts as a central hub for managing and deploying these elements. When you set up a GTM account, you’ll create a container for each website or app you want to track. The container’s code is placed on every page of your site, and it’s the gateway through which GTM adds and updates tags.

Tags: The Tracking Codes

Tags are snippets of code or tracking pixels that gather specific data from your website. They collect information about user interactions, such as clicks, form submissions, page views, and more. Tags are often used to integrate various third-party tools and services onto your website. Here’s a curated list of some of the items Tag Manager can aid in tracking:

• Google Analytics Tag: This tag integrates Google Analytics tracking into your website. It enables you to monitor user behavior, track conversions, and gain insights into how visitors interact with your site.
• Facebook Pixel Tag: The Facebook Pixel tag helps you track user actions on your website for retargeting and tracking conversions on Facebook ads. It allows you to optimize ad campaigns based on user behavior.
• Google Ads Conversion Tag: This tag tracks conversions and user actions on your website related to Google Ads campaigns. It enables you to measure the effectiveness of your ad campaigns and optimize your targeting.
• Hotjar Tag: Hotjar is a user behavior analytics tool. The tag captures heatmaps, session recordings, and user feedback, helping you understand how users navigate and interact with your site.
• LinkedIn Insight Tag: This tag tracks conversions and user interactions on your website for LinkedIn advertising campaigns. It provides insights into how LinkedIn users engage with your site.
• Twitter Universal Website Tag: This tag helps you track conversions and user activity for Twitter advertising campaigns. It allows you to measure the impact of your Twitter ads on website interactions.
• Google Optimize Tag: Google Optimize is a testing and personalization platform. This tag allows you to deploy experiments and personalization campaigns on your website through GTM.
• DoubleClick Floodlight Counter Tag: DoubleClick Floodlight is used for tracking conversions and user interactions for DoubleClick (now part of Google Marketing Platform) advertising campaigns.
• Pinterest Tag: The Pinterest Tag tracks user interactions on your website for Pinterest advertising campaigns. It enables you to measure conversions and optimize ad targeting.
• Custom HTML Tag: This tag allows you to add custom HTML, CSS, and JavaScript code to your website via GTM. It’s useful for integrating tools or tracking codes not directly supported by other tags.
• Scroll Tracking Tag: This tag tracks how far users scroll down a page, helping you understand user engagement and identify sections that might need optimization.
• YouTube Video Tracking Tag: This tag tracks user interactions with embedded YouTube videos on your website. It captures events like play, pause, and completion.

Functions of Tags: What They Do

Tags serve different functions based on the tracking requirement or integration you’re implementing. Some common functions of tags include:

1. Tracking Pageviews: Tags can be used to track when a user loads a specific page on your website, allowing you to gather insights into user behavior.
2. Event Tracking: Tags can be configured to track specific user interactions, like clicks on buttons, downloads of files, form submissions, and video views.
3. Conversion Tracking: Tags enable you to monitor user actions that lead to conversions, such as completed purchases, sign-ups, or downloads.
4. Remarketing and Advertising: Tags enable you to collect data for retargeting purposes and for creating audiences for advertising platforms like Google Ads and Facebook Ads.
5. Custom HTML and JavaScript: Tags can also be used to deploy custom code or scripts for specific functionalities on your website.

Creating Tags in Google Tag Manager

To create a tag in GTM, follow these steps:

1. Log in to your Google Tag Manager account and select the appropriate container.
2. Navigate to the “Tags” section within the container.
3. Click the “+ New” button to create a new tag.
4. Choose a tag type based on your tracking requirement. For example, you might choose “Google Analytics” if you want to track pageviews using Google Analytics.
5. Configure the settings for the tag, which may include entering your Google Analytics Tracking ID, setting up triggers for when the tag should fire, and defining additional parameters.
6. Save your tag configuration.
7. Test your tag using the “Preview” mode to ensure it’s working as intended.

Creating a Google Ads Conversion Tracking Tag

To create a tag for tracking conversions in Google Ads using GTM, follow these steps:

1. Log in to your Google Tag Manager account and select the container for your website.
2. Navigate to the “Tags” section and click “+ New” to create a new tag.
3. Select the “Google Ads Conversion Tracking” tag type.
4. Enter your Google Ads conversion ID and label. You can find these in your Google Ads account under “Tools & Settings” > “Conversions.”
5. Configure the firing triggers for the tag. For example, you might fire the tag on a specific page after a form submission.
6. Define additional settings, such as the conversion value and format.
7. Save the tag configuration.
8. Preview and test your tag to ensure it’s working correctly.
9. Once confirmed, publish your changes in GTM to make the tag live on your website.

By utilizing Google Tag Manager, you can efficiently manage various tracking codes and tags on your website, enabling you to collect valuable data and insights to optimize your digital marketing efforts, all while enabling multiple hands in the Tag Manager cookie jar.