Do you use tracking codes on your website?
Have you heard of Google Tag Manager?
In this blog, you’ll learn what Google Tag Manager is and why it’s so useful for managing tags.
Introduction
If you have a basic sales process and you are getting traffic from all different sources across the web. You’ll want to analyze that traffic, show ads to grow your email list, or make sales.
To do this, you will integrate JavaScript/HTML codes on your website. The code will send your website traffic data to your vendor or marketing solutions.
But the software you use does not matter here. Because each one of those solutions requires you to add a tracking code or pixel to your web pages. Like blog, checkout page, email service provider, etc.
And with time this can become chaotic and difficult to manage.
Google Tag Manager simplifies this process.
It allows you to place a single Tag Manager code across all your pages once. Then you can add all different marketing tags, inside the Tag Manager interface only.
So Google Tag Manager works as a bucket or a Giant virtual file cabinet.
For example if you want to run Bing Ads. You don’t have to go to each one of your web pages and put the Bing ads tag across all pages. You can set the Bing code inside the tag manager. This streamlines the process and saves you time.
So what used to take an hour or more can now be done in a few minutes. This is the power of Tag Manager.
What is Google Tag Manager?
Google Tag Manager is a free tool from Google. It’s a Tag Management System that lets you update tracking codes and other code snippets — called tags, on your website or mobile app. With GTM, you can also do server-side tracking.
Now you might be thinking if GTM only add tags to a website, why do you need it, when a developer can do the same thing?
How Does GTM Help Marketers?
To understand how GTM can help you as a marketer, first let’s understand 3 scenarios:
Example 1: Integrating Google Analytics
Let’s say you want to integrate Google Analytics with your website. So you can track traffic, interaction, user behavior coming to your website. .
So how do you connect Google Analytics with your website?
When Google Analytics gives you Java script code you install that code to your website. Then Google Analytics as a software connects with your website. This allows you to access tracking related information of your website on Google Analytics.
Generally the method to do that is:
First you create an account on Google Analytics,
Get the Java script code from Google Analytics,
Give that code to the developer
Developer install that code on the head section of every page of your website,
This is the typical process to connect Google Analytics with your website.
Example 2: Setting Up Remarketing with Google Ads
Let’s say you are getting a lot of traffic and want to create an audience for remarketing through Google Ads. You’d need to:
Create an account on Google Ads.
Get a remarketing tag from Google Ads.
Embed the tag in the head section of all pages to create a remarketing audience.
Again, you would give this code to your developer, and they will install the code on your website.
Similarly, if you want to show ads on platforms like LinkedIn, Twitter or Meta. You would need to install their respective tracking pixels on each page of your website.
Example 3: Setting Up Tags for Specific Conditions
But there are some codes which you want to fire for a specific condition.
For example, you might want the Google Ads conversion tag to fire on the thank you page of your website. So whenever the thank you page loads, then the Google Ads conversion tag fires too.
But this time you don’t want your code to fire on all pages. It only fires on a specific condition on a specific page. This condition is called Trigger.
So, when the thank-you page is loaded, the Google Ads conversion tag should fire.
And to amend these changes you would ask your developer again.
And every time to install these codes, whether in all pages or in specific conditions, you have to ask your developer. This can make the process complicated and time-consuming.
So if you want to use tags and triggers like this you can do this with GTM. It will avoid the need to repeatedly involve your developer.
Importance of Tag Manager
Reliability and Coverage
Apart from speed, reliability is a significant reason to use Tag Manager.
If you have different web pages or use automation services with their own landing pages. Then missing tags on some pages can compromise your analytics.
GTM ensures complete coverage by acting as a bucket placed on every page. This means you’re covered as long as you use GTM across all your pages.
Flexibility in Tag Management
GTM is flexible.
It allows you to specify that you want tags on some pages, all pages, or on certain conditions.
For example, if you are promoting an event like Digital Marketing World. And want to place a tag on the event page for visitors who haven’t purchased a ticket yet.
GTM lets you specify that the tag should fire only if the URL contains “dmw2024.”
Empowering Marketers
GTM is important for marketers who don’t control website updates.
If you are with a large company you need to go through the IT department to add new tags. Or if you have a small website, you rely on outside contractors for maintenance, updating tags. And it can be challenging.
With GTM, you can add and remove tags through Tag Manager without needing to update the website.
The only thing you need to do is connect your website with GTM once. And rest of the tags you can add from the GTM interface itself.
Connecting Google Tag Manager to your website:
Here’s how you would connect Google Tag Manager with your website:
Integrate GTM on Your Website: The method depends on your website’s technology.
WordPress: Use plugins or install GTM on the backend.
Custom-Coded Sites: A developer will place the GTM code on all pages.
Other CMS (e.g., Wix, Squarespace): Each has its method for integration.
This is a one-time setup process. Once you connect the GTM to your website, you can manage tracking codes without further involvement of a developer.
Note: If you want to connect Google Analytics 4 with a wordpress website using GTM, check out this blog.
Benefits of Google Tag Manager
User Friendly – 100% of tracking marketers can do. It eliminates developers.
Centralized Management – All tags and triggers are managed in one place. You understand what tags are firing at what triggers.
For example, the Google Analytics tag might fire on all pages, while the Google Ads conversion tracking fires only on the thank-you page.
Debug Mode: It has a preview and debug mode which can troubleshoot your settings. So whenever you set a tag on GTM you can test that code with preview and debug mode, before making that code live. You can ensure that the condition you want to fire that code on, is firing or not.
Version Control: Allows you to roll back at any time. If you have different sets of tags + triggers at one version, you can always roll back to that version.
Users and Permission Management: Like Google Analytics and Search Console, you can add team members and manage permissions.
Tag and Trigger Export/Import: You can export tags and triggers from one GTM container and import them into another. This makes easy to replicate tagging setups across different websites.
Let’s say if you create ecommerce related tags on one container of your GTM. You can download those tags and upload it up on another ecommerce website container.
Google Tag Manager vs Traditional Tag Management System
Advanced Use Cases and Tracking
GTM isn’t for basic tracking only. It’s also used for advanced data collection and passing that data to Google Analytics.
For example, you can use GTM to track when someone hovers over a video on your website, even if they don’t click on it.
For e-commerce sites or anyone selling products on third-party platforms, GTM can track outbound clicks.
For example, if you sell books on Amazon. But have no control over Amazon’s analytics.
You can set up an outbound click tracker with GTM to track clicks from your site to Amazon. By comparing the number of clicks with book sales, you can determine the value of each click on book sales.
Conclusion
In summary GTM is a unified solution which is making tag management easy. There are other tools like GTM too.
But because it’s free, popular and almost every marketer use it, it’s an essential tool for everyone.