Get started with Tag Manager

Considerations before you install

This article is for users who are new to Google Tag Manager. If you are just getting started:

Before you dive into implementing Google Tag Manager on your site, you need to consider the following:

  • Who uses Tag Manager and who should be an administrator?
  • How many website domains do you have and how do you want to organize them in Tag Manager?
  • What tags do you need and how should they be deployed?

Manage users and Google Tag Manager accounts

When you first set up a Tag Manager account, put a strategy in place for who will manage the account over the long term, and to define how account ownership will be handled should a member of your team change roles.

Have a strategy that will help to ensure that if someone leaves your organization and their account credentials are terminated, the organization will maintain access to your Tag Manager account. Some organizations delegate administrator roles to multiple users. Others create a dedicated master Google account just for Tag Manager administration for their organization. Choose the system that works best for you.

Account management for agencies

Set up one Tag Manager account per organization. The organization for which the tags will be managed should create the Tag Manager account. For example, if an agency manages tags on behalf of your company, then your company should create the Tag Manager account and add the agency's Google account as a user.

Agencies can manage their clients' existing accounts in the admin section of Tag Manager. Multiple users can manage the same Google Tag Manager account, and each user can be given different access permissions by the account administrators. Google Tag Manager 360 customers can add and control additional containers using zones.

Organize web domains and containers

The best practice is to set up one container per web domain. However, if the user experience and tags on a website span more than one domain, it's best to set up a single container that serves all the domains involved. Here are a few considerations:

  • Configurations can't easily be shared across containers without using container export and import, or by using the API. If the tags and firing logic is similar across domains, use a single container.
  • When someone publishes a container, all changes go live, regardless of domain. If you need to apply changes to one domain without affecting other domains, use a different container for each domain.

Learn more about cross domain measurement.

Consider what tags you will need and where to deploy them

The best practice for every Tag Manager implementation should be to start with an analytics strategy and tag implementation plan.

If you work on a new website without tags, identify the kinds of tags you will need. Google Tag Manager already supports a lot of tags without additional setup. Learn more about supported tags.

If you already have tags on your website:

  • Identify all the tags you have deployed on your existing site or app.
  • Create a migration plan to move your tags to Tag Manager. You might need help from a web developer for this step.
  • If you can't replace a tag on your website with a supported tag, set up a custom tag. You might need help from a web developer for this step.

If all of your tags fire as pages load, and each page has a unique URL, a basic container implementation is sufficient. If your tag firing scenarios are more complex, you may want to implement a more customized container implementation. These custom solutions often implement a data layer, which is code that helps Tag Manager pass data from your site or app to your tags.

Depending on your tagging requirements, server-side tagging may be an optimal solution to improve site or device performance, and enhance data quality and security. Learn more about client-side tagging vs server-side tagging.

Set up Google Tag Manager

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