Setting Up a Custom Event on Google Tag Manager for Google Analytics (GA4)

Objective:

To track a custom event on a website using Google Tag Manager (GTM) and send the data to Google Analytics (GA4).

Prerequisites:

• Access to the website’s GTM account.
• A configured GA4 property.

Steps:

1. Login to Google Tag Manager

• • Go to Google Tag Manager.
  • Sign in with your Google account.
  • Select the appropriate container for your website.

2. Create a New Tag

• • In the GTM dashboard, click on “Tags” in the left-hand menu.
  • Click the “New” button to create a new tag.
  • Click on the “Tag Configuration” box.

3. Select GA4 Event Tag Type

• • In the tag configuration window, select “GA4 Event” from the list of tag types.

4. Configure the GA4 Event Tag

• • Configuration Tag: Select your existing GA4 configuration tag from the dropdown. If you don’t have one, you need to set up a GA4 configuration tag first.
  • Event Name: Enter a name for the custom event. This name will appear in your GA4 reports.
  • Event Parameters: Add any parameters you want to send with the event. For example, if you want to track a button click, you might include parameters like button_text or page_path.

5. Add Trigger to Fire the Tag

• • Click on the “Triggering” box.
  • Select an existing trigger or click the “+” button to create a new one.
  • Example Trigger Setup:
    • For a button click, choose “Click – All Elements”.
    • Configure the trigger to fire on specific conditions, such as when a button with a specific ID or class is clicked.

6. Save and Name Your Tag

• • After configuring the tag and trigger, click “Save”.
  • Name your tag descriptively, e.g., “GA4 – Button Click – Sign Up”.

7. Preview and Test the Tag

• • Click on the “Preview” button in the top right corner of GTM.
  • Enter your website’s URL and click “Start”.
  • This will open your website in debug mode.
  • Perform the action that should trigger the event (e.g., clicking the button).
  • In the GTM debug panel, ensure that your tag fires correctly.

8. Publish the Changes

• • If the tag fires correctly in preview mode, go back to the GTM dashboard.
  • Click the “Submit” button in the top right corner.
  • Add a descriptive version name and description, then click “Publish”.

9. Verify Event in GA4

• • Go to your GA4 property in Google Analytics.
  • Navigate to “Realtime” to see if the custom event is being tracked.
  • For detailed verification, go to “Events” under the “Events” section in the left-hand menu.

Additional Tips:

• Debugging: Use the GTM preview and debug mode extensively to ensure your tags and triggers work correctly before publishing.
• Event Parameters: Customize the event parameters to capture more detailed data about the interactions.
• Documentation: Keep a log of all custom events and tags you set up for future reference and troubleshooting.

Feel free to modify or expand this SOP to fit your specific needs and workflow. If you need further assistance with any specific step, let me know!