How I started learning google tag manger

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How I started learning Google tag manger

Google Tag manager can seem extremely daunting at first, diving in to the seemingly ending pool of resources available, there seems like there is far too much to learn all at one go, It made me quite anxious, and perhaps made you anxious to, to even start learning, as the curve seemed so large.

Don't worry.

The initial stumbling blocks are easy to comprehend if you just stick at them, and you focus yourself on a set curriculum. Here, I'll help you, with knowledge I wish I had when I started to learn GTM.

First steps

To get off the ground you'll need to find some solid resources, here's what I used and what I would whole heartedly recommend:


  1. https://support.google.com/tagmanager/answer/6102821?hl=en - 'Before you begin' with GTM, all 4 pages are a great first read.
  2. http://gtmtraining.com/ - A thorough training site with a vast amount of free resources to get you well on your way to mastering GTM. This in itself, watching from start to end, will guide you through the learning process, easing you in and being able to apply it to your own projects if you so desire.
  3. https://www.distilled.net/blog/getting-started-with-google-tag-manager/ - For a holistic yet slightly outdated overview, Tim Allen gives a learner a quick look at the main features of GTM.

Learn by Doing


The previous list was ordered in a fashion so that you should set up your own account first. There's no better way to actually apply the theory rather than to go out and apply it. This is where it's okay to mistakes, spend an hour on a minute detail you don't quite get. These luxuries are things you may not have with actual in production apps.

In the next blogpost, I'll show you how to set up your own basic app, using our github page, where you can then run your own tests on basic app. There we'll chaperone you through some of the initial challenges of GTM.