Getting Started with Google Tag Manager
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQDdv_WqCgg&embed=true
Understanding Google Tag Manager
If you’re looking to gain a deeper understanding of how visitors interact with your WordPress site, Google Tag Manager is an excellent tool to use. It allows you to track various user interactions, such as clicks, form submissions, and pageviews, without requiring any coding knowledge.
Google Tag Manager is a free tool that can be used to manage multiple tracking codes, making it easier to keep track of your website’s performance. It works by placing a container code on your website, which then allows you to add and manage tracking codes without having to modify your website’s code directly.
Creating Your Google Tag Manager Account
Before you can start using Google Tag Manager, you’ll need to create an account. To do this, head over to the Google Tag Manager website and sign up for free. Once you’ve created your account, you can begin setting up your container.
A container is a virtual container that holds all of your tracking codes. You can create multiple containers for different websites or sections of your website. To create a container, click on the “Create Container” button and follow the prompts.
Once you’ve created your container, you’ll need to add the container code to your WordPress site. You can do this by installing a plugin or by manually adding the code to your website’s header.
With Google Tag Manager set up on your WordPress site, you’ll be able to track user interactions and gain valuable insights into how visitors are interacting with your website.
Installing Google Tag Manager on WordPress
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SDc3CEv5Zsw&embed=true
Adding Google Tag Manager to your WordPress website can be done in a few easy steps. Here’s how:
Choosing the Right Plugin
The first step in installing Google Tag Manager on WordPress is to choose the right plugin. There are many plugins available that can help you add code snippets to your website, but not all of them are created equal. One popular plugin that can help you add custom code to your site is the Insert Headers and Footers plugin. This plugin allows you to add code snippets to your website without having to edit your theme files. Another option is to use a child theme and add the code snippet to the header.php or functions.php file.
Manual Installation via Code Snippets
If you prefer to manually add the code snippet to your website, you can do so by following these steps:
- Log in to your Google Tag Manager account and navigate to the container that you want to use on your website.
- Click on the “Install Google Tag Manager” button and copy the code snippet that is provided.
- Open your WordPress dashboard and navigate to Appearance > Editor.
- Select the theme that you are using and locate the header.php file.
- Paste the code snippet just before the closing tag.
- Save the changes and refresh your website to ensure that the code snippet is working properly.
By following these steps, you can easily add Google Tag Manager to your WordPress website and start tracking your website visitors and their behavior.
Configuring Tags and Triggers
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j21LqqXEDck&embed=true
Setting Up Basic Tags
Now that we have created a container and installed the tag manager on our WordPress site, it’s time to configure some tags. Tags are snippets of code that are added to your site to track specific events, such as button clicks, form submissions, and page views.
To set up a basic tag, follow these steps:
- Click on the “Tags” option in the left-hand menu of your Google Tag Manager dashboard.
- Click on the “New” button in the top right corner of the screen.
- Name your tag and select the tag type. For example, if you want to track page views, select “Google Analytics: Universal Analytics” as your tag type.
- Configure your tag settings. For example, if you are using Google Analytics, you will need to enter your tracking ID.
- Save your tag.
Once your tag is saved, it will be added to your container and will start tracking the events you specified.
Defining Triggers for User Actions
Tags alone are not enough to track user behavior on your site. You also need to define triggers, which are events that tell your tags when to fire. For example, you might want to track when a user clicks on a specific button or submits a form.
To define a trigger, follow these steps:
- Click on the “Triggers” option in the left-hand menu of your Google Tag Manager dashboard.
- Click on the “New” button in the top right corner of the screen.
- Name your trigger and select the trigger type. For example, if you want to track button clicks, select “Click – Just Links” as your trigger type.
- Configure your trigger settings. For example, if you are tracking button clicks, you will need to specify the button ID or class.
- Save your trigger.
Once your trigger is saved, you can associate it with your tags. For example, you might associate your “Page View” tag with the “All Pages” trigger, and your “Button Click” tag with the “Click – Just Links” trigger.
By configuring tags and triggers correctly, you can track user behavior on your site and gain valuable insights into how your visitors interact with your content. This can help you optimize your site for better engagement, conversions, and revenue.
Verifying and Publishing Your Tags
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hkXyFj1PmdE&embed=true
After you have added your tags to Google Tag Manager, it is important to verify and publish them to ensure that they are working correctly. In this section, I will cover two methods for verifying and publishing your tags: using the Tag Assistant and the Preview and Publish workflow.
Using the Tag Assistant
Google Tag Assistant is a free Chrome extension that can help you verify your tags. Once you have installed the extension, you can click on the Tag Assistant icon in your browser to open the tool.
To use the Tag Assistant, you can simply navigate to your website and click on the Record button in the Tag Assistant. This will start recording your website activity and allow you to see which tags are firing and which ones are not.
If you notice any errors or issues with your tags, you can use the Tag Assistant to troubleshoot and fix them. Once you have resolved any issues, you can move on to the next step: the Preview and Publish workflow.
Preview and Publish Workflow
The Preview and Publish workflow is a built-in feature of Google Tag Manager that allows you to test and publish your tags. To use this feature, you can click on the Preview button in the top right corner of your Google Tag Manager dashboard.
Once you have entered preview mode, you can navigate to your website and test your tags. You can also make any necessary changes to your tags and test them again until you are satisfied that they are working correctly.
Once you have verified that your tags are working correctly, you can publish them by clicking on the Submit button in the top right corner of your Google Tag Manager dashboard. This will publish your tags to your live website and ensure that they are working correctly for all visitors.
In conclusion, verifying and publishing your tags is an important step in the process of adding Google Tag Manager to your WordPress website. By using the Tag Assistant and Preview and Publish workflow, you can ensure that your tags are working correctly and providing you with accurate data.
Advanced Tag Manager Features
As you get more comfortable with Google Tag Manager and its basic features, you can start exploring some of the more advanced capabilities. Here are a few features that I find particularly useful:
Tracking Complex Events
One of the most powerful features of Google Tag Manager is its ability to track complex events. You can use variables to capture information about a user’s behavior on your site, such as which buttons they clicked, which pages they visited, and how long they spent on each page. You can then use this information to create custom tags and triggers that fire based on specific user actions.
For example, let’s say you run an e-commerce site and you want to track when users add items to their cart. You can create a custom data layer variable that captures the product name, price, and quantity whenever a user clicks the “Add to Cart” button. You can then use this variable to create a custom tag that sends this information to Google Analytics 4 as an ecommerce event.
Integrating Additional Tools
Google Tag Manager can also be used to integrate with additional tools beyond Google Analytics. For example, you can use it to integrate with Google Optimize, which allows you to run A/B tests and personalize your site’s content based on user behavior.
You can also use it to set up data streams, which allow you to send data from your site to other tools such as Google Ads or Google BigQuery. This can be particularly useful if you want to analyze your site’s data in more detail or use it to inform your advertising campaigns.
Finally, you can use templates to streamline the process of creating tags and triggers. Google Tag Manager provides a number of templates for common use cases, such as tracking outbound links or scroll depth. By using these templates, you can save time and ensure that your tags and triggers are set up correctly.
Overall, Google Tag Manager is a powerful tool that can help you track user behavior on your site and integrate with a variety of other tools. By exploring its advanced features, you can take your tracking and analysis to the next level.
