Google Tag Manager - STEP BY STEP Guide
If you have a website and want to find an option to install a tracking code, from here we are going to talk about a new and simple way to do it. Google Tag Manager, what is it for?
Most likely, you will be familiar with remarketing or pixel tags on well-known platforms such as Google Ads, LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter or Google Analytics. Well, these are codes or tags in charge of measuring the performance of your advertising campaigns, optimizing the SEO of your website and analyzing the KPIs.
However, when it comes to managing these tags, it can be a complicated task, not only because the tags have to be tested, but because they need to be updated frequently. However, if you want to simplify the whole process, Google Tag Manager is the solution. It is a free tool from which we are going to provide you with all the information you need.
What is Google Tag Manager and how does it work?
It is a free tool that is used to manage tags, so you can manage your pixels or tags without having to edit HTML or JavaScript codes and all in the same place. In addition, with it you can add and update your tags to follow the conversions made, analyze your website or collect information. We talk about the easiest and fastest way to manage the tags on your page.
Google Tag Manager works with Google tags and with other applications, so it will allow you to modify your tags whenever you want to get the best results. Without a doubt, this process has changed a lot because when tag managers saw their light, they weren't very accessible tools. Luckily, we currently have an easy-to-use free product with which to monitor any marketing strategy.
Google Tag Manager is presented as a dashboard that measures web analytics. Its interface is very dynamic and friendly so that you can use it without needing the help of the web development provider to replace the tag codes.
Now that you know what Google Tag Manager is, we have to remind you that you have the help of Google Tag Assistant, a tool for the Chrome browser that will allow you to record tags and any interaction on a website.
You should also know that for a digital store and Google Analytics to interact, you can install the lines of code in different ways. On the one hand, you can include the Google Tag Manager codes in the "head" and "body" manually. The truth is that it is not a very complicated process, even less for a programmer, although you also have the option of installing a plugin in your WordPress, Google Tag Manager woocommerce.
What can be done with Google Tag Manager?
Do you want to know what are the main benefits of Tag Manager and how it works? Read on and we'll tackle the topic.
Organize labels quickly
If you don't have a tag manager like this, you will need to add tags to the web manually and then monitor activity regularly, as well as troubleshoot or remove expired codes.
In addition, in order to analyze user behavior, it is often necessary to use various tags in advertisements, form submissions, clicks in personalized campaigns, and so on.
However, the truth is that it is difficult to manage so many labels on one website. In addition to using a lot of time and effort, it can be quite expensive. Now, Google Tag Manager simplifies everything and makes the process more agile.
The idea is to reduce the number of tags needed and store all the codes in the same space. Thus, the monitoring data will remain correctly organized and ordered. Also, you don't need to be a developer or programmer to implement code and make changes.
Low technology costs
Google Tag Manager is a cheaper tool that will allow you to implement and debug tags easily and quickly. That way, your team can spend more time doing other tasks to boost your company's resources.
Since Google Tag Manager is free, the cost assigned to your software budget will be zero. Despite everything, errors can appear at any given time.
To avoid duplicating the codes and keep everything well tied and organized, it is convenient that you put into practice some things like the following ones:
- Define objectives and follow up
- Do not include many tags together on your website to avoid slowing down the loading time.
- Disable or delete tags that are no longer useful.
- Do not add custom HTML tags that impact against the current code.
- Before new implementations, establish analytical alerts.
Increase the value of web analytics
Google Tag Manager will send information to Google Analytics to efficiently analyze the web. This way you will be able to know which pages of your website need to be improved or which ones have optimal performance.
The web analytics can do the following checks: traffic sources, blog posts, user browsing time, page views in real time, location and device used by visitors, the sections with the most conversions or the tabs with the highest abandonment rate .
Interaction-based tracking
Google Tag Manager is a great tool that will allow you to activate all kinds of tags in any situation. For example, when the user clicks the "Add to cart" option. And you can include clicks when submitting forms, buttons, etc.
If the Google Tag Manager implanted tags give an error or do not work as they should, it is possible to fix it easily by adding an older version. You can also name them and give them personalized descriptions to facilitate possible changes and updates.
How to use the Tag Manager?
Google Tag Manager is an exceptional tool to be able to manage marketing tags smoothly and efficiently. The truth is that you can use it for more than tracking your website traffic. Can't you think of a multitude of reasons to create labels? If you do not know how to do it, you should not worry because on the Internet you will find a multitude of tutorials to configure them in Google Tag Manager.
It is possible to install Tag Manager through a plugin. In addition, it is as easy to use as copying and pasting code. The advantage of using this system is speed and security by avoiding touching other codes on your website. However, the downside is that the more plug-ins you add, the more performance and speed will be affected.
The second option is to install Google Tag Manager manually, for which it is necessary to enter the WordPress editor and modify the code. If you are not a programmer, it may be a complicated process, although there are tutorials on the internet that explain the process step by step to see a little light.
How to create an account in Google Tag Manager?
If you already have a Google account, it is really easy. Just go to the GTM page and click on "Register Now". That easy.
From here you will have an important tag manager to easily update the codes and tags of your website. Either way, we are going to see the steps to follow to create an account in Google Tag Manager:
- Access the Tag Manager page.
- Click on "Register Now".
- Select the Google account to log in with and click "Create Account."
- Fill in the fields with your account information: country, name of the container or application and type of project.
- Accept the GTM conditions.
How to link Google Tag Manager with our website?
Find out how to do it through these simple steps:
tag and the second one below the
. For the tool to work well, both must be added.
- Once the account creation process is finished and the terms of use are accepted, an image will appear with the GTM code, which must be added to the source code of the website. If you have the WordPress editor, you should go to "Appearance" and then to the theme editor.
- Next, find the header.php file and insert your code. A first code must be added below the
- Then update the file to save the changes and go to Google Tag Manager to click "OK".
As we said before, if manual installation is a very complex task for you, use a plugin. Just go to "plugins" and search for the right one. Once you locate it, click on "Install now" and activate it. If you have done it correctly, "Google Tag Manager" will appear in the settings section. Click on it and enter the GTM ID, located in the upper right part of the interface.