Performance

Google Tag Manager

Also known as: GTM · tag manager

Definition

Google Tag Manager is a free tool for adding and managing tracking code, called tags, on a website through a web interface instead of editing the site's code. Triggers control what fires and when, and variables pass in the data each tag needs.

A container snippet goes onto the site once. After that, marketers can add analytics, ad pixels and conversion events, test them in preview mode and publish a numbered version, with the option to roll back. The same power is the risk: anyone with publish rights can break tracking or send data somewhere it shouldn't go, so limit who can publish and keep a naming convention and a change log.

Check who owns the container. If an agency or freelancer created it under their own account, the business can lose its tracking history when the relationship ends, so it should sit in an account the business owns. It's also where consent settings are usually wired in, so tags fire only as the visitor's choice allows. An audit of an old container often finds tags from tools nobody uses. Delete them, because each one adds weight to the page.

More in Performance

A/B testing

A/B testing compares two versions of one element, such as a headline, an offer or a page, by showing each to a randomly split share of traffic at the same time and measuring which produces more conversions. It needs enough traffic and one change at a time.

Ad fatigue

Ad fatigue is the decline in an ad's performance as the same people see it repeatedly, usually visible as rising frequency and falling click-through rate before cost per result climbs. The remedy is fresh creative or a wider audience, not a bigger budget.

Ad Rank

Ad Rank is the value Google Ads calculates in each auction to decide whether an ad is eligible to show and where it sits against others. It combines the bid with ad and landing page quality, minimum thresholds, competition, search context and the expected impact of assets.