To start working with advertising and analytical web services, you need to place a special code on all pages of the site. This task is easily solved if you need to install only a few of these tools, you are familiar with the HTML language, or you can enlist the help of a professional developer.
Difficulties appear at the stage of making adjustments to the already added code or when adding new services. Foremost, this process is time-consuming. The second problem is that any careless movement associated with editing the code can affect the performance of both several pages and the entire web resource. But there is a tool that allows you to forget about these kinds of issues. This is Google Tag Manager. Along with the official name of the service, the abbreviation “GTM” or “Tag Manager” is often used.
What is Google Tag Manager?
Google Tag Manager is a helper service that makes it possible to manage JavaScript snippets and HTML tags without the involvement of programmers. Or almost without involvement – you need to use the services of a professional only once for the correct integration of the GTM itself.
Hint! As a result, you will have a convenient mechanism at your disposal, with the help of which you can install new services and correct existing scripts on your own through the Tag Manager interface.
This solution makes the work of marketing specialists more flexible, while programmers are not distracted by trifles and can fully devote themselves to serious tasks. The tool is intended primarily for marketers who get the opportunity to manage all the tags on a web resource through a single application.
Who will benefit from Google Tag Manager?
Specialists working in the field of advertising and marketing – for more independent and autonomous work with web services, monitoring key site performance indicators and developing a convenient end-to-end analytics structure;
Contextologists—Google Tag Manager makes it easy to set up your own remarketing and goals, and helps you analyze the effectiveness of marketing activities;
For owners of small sites – to set up external services without involving a webmaster;
Digital marketing companies to better manage customer accounts.
What is GTM for?
You can constantly draw up technical specifications for developers, endlessly wait for their implementation, then look for errors and make adjustments to existing specifications, and wait again. Or shift the solution of 90% of tasks to the convenient GTM service, which will save not only finances and time, but also save peace of mind when integrating web tools.
Connect the site with analytical systems, such as Analytics by Google or Metrika developed by Yandex, for the correct transfer of data;
Add remarketing tags for social networks and contextual advertising systems to the site;
Edit HTML scripts that perform various tasks: displaying advertising banners, organizing A / B testing, etc.;
Quickly change existing tags;
Track all the actions of visitors on the site and direct them to the service you need;
Set up call tracking;
Enable cross-domain monitoring;
Measure user satisfaction with a web resource using Google Optimize.
When is a tag manager particularly effective?
Google Tag Manager is a universal tool that is effective in a wide variety of use cases. But it will show itself best if you:
There is a need to use several analytics services
Each web analytics tool has its own features and advantages. Google Analytics is good for analyzing traffic sources, Facebook Pixel allows you to track conversions for users who come to the site from this social network, but Hotjar is especially good at tracking the behavior of visitors on the site.
Installing several separate scripts for each service will take a lot of time. But with the help of a tag manager, you can insert just one code onto the site, and then add new counters in a convenient web interface.
No developer on staff
To install any new script, you need to understand HTML, understand which file needs to be edited, and work with an FTP client. If GTM is already installed on the site, this is not necessary.
You will not need to contact the developer every time you update external scripts or the counter. You will save on programmer services and be able to activate the tools you need.
You need to regularly run A/B testing
The tag manager will help you track which version of the page worked better during A/B testing. Using the tool, you can instantly analyze the results and determine the best landing page option.
Several projects in progress simultaneously
From one GTM account, you can control analytics and tracking codes across all sites. If you need to change or add something, changes can be made in one interface without opening several different accounts. This saves the internet marketer time for more important tasks.
Main benefits of using Google Tag Manager
GTM should be used, if only because it makes the life and work of a marketer easier, as well as saves time and money. But this tool has other important advantages:
The service is completely free;
Impressive number of supported integrations. See the reference section for the list;
Using the Tag Manager allows you to reduce the code and, therefore, increase the speed of the site – the pages of the web resource will open faster;
With the help of the test and debug function, it is convenient to test the work of new or changed tags before transferring them to the site;
The history of changes allows you to quickly find out who and when made adjustments, as well as return to the previous version if the new code does not work correctly;
The ability to work together with several users with different levels of access to the account – both their own employees and managers involved in the promotion of third-party agencies;
The system allows you to easily verify the rights to a web resource for GSC.
What is the structure of the tag manager?
The tag manager account. The space in which containers exist and are managed;
Container. Implemented in the form of JS code, the only tag that needs to be added to all pages of the site. It is the container for all other tags;
Tag. Small code snippets of external resources that track traffic and behavioral factors, evaluate the effectiveness of marketing activities, set up remarketing campaigns, set target audience criteria, test and optimize your own site;
Trigger. Defines when the tag is executed and when it is blocked;
Variables. For these name-value pairs, parameters are passed during operation. They are used both for user variables and for defining conditions for tag activation.
How to set up Google Tag Manager?
Step 1. Click the “Start for free” link on the GTM home page. Make sure you are logged in to Google. This is necessary for registration and subsequent work in GTM.
Step 2. Create an account by setting all the parameters requested by the system. You should carefully consider the target platform. It is here that it is indicated where the tool will be integrated: on a web resource or in an online application. Next, click “Yes” when answering the question about agreeing to the user agreement.
Step 3. The system will redirect you to your personal account area, and the script code will be displayed in the window that appears. It is he who we need. This snippet should be copied and pasted into your website pages right after the tag.
Step 4: Use the Custom Variables option in the Variables section to create a pageview variable and further customize Google Tag Manager. In the list offered for selecting the value of the “Variable Type” field, click on the “Google Analytics Settings” line and enter your unique counter number in the appropriate field.
Step 5. In the “Tags” subsection, generate a tag with the function of transferring information to the analytical system.
You should specify its type – “Google Analytics – Universal Analytics”, and set the tracking parameter to “Page View”. Select the variable that was created in the previous paragraph in the “Google Analytics Settings” column. Check the trigger “All Pages”, come up with a tag name and commit the changes.
Step 6. Activate the adjustments made to the container by clicking Submit in the workspace. In the form that appears, select a new edition of the container, click “Publish”.
Hint! To avoid duplication of information, the code of the analytical system previously placed on the pages should be deleted.
Step 7. Check the tag’s performance by downloading the “Real-time – Overview” report. Upon successful integration, data will begin to appear in it.
How to add a trigger to GTM?
You can add a new trigger to Google Tag Manager in the left vertical menu of Tag Manager:
Determine the type of trigger by selecting it from the drop-down list:
You need to choose under what conditions the trigger will be activated, for example, it can be a click on a link. Specify the address of the page, the sources of transition to which you are interested in and save the newly created trigger:
Setting up variables in the Tag Manager
To connect a new variable in the Tag Manager, use the menu on the left side of the screen. The system will offer you a choice of built-in variables that you can further customize to your needs. You can also create a custom variable:
In the drop-down list, you can explore options for built-in variables. Check the box next to the appropriate option and the required variable will appear in the trigger filter:
