2. Initial Setup: GA4 and GTM Basics

This section guides you through the foundational steps of setting up a Google Tag Manager (GTM) container and a Google Analytics 4 (GA4) property, then linking them for basic page view tracking. This is the first step before implementing more advanced ecommerce tracking.

Prerequisites

Step 1: Create a New GTM Container (If You Don't Have One)

  1. Go to Google Tag Manager
  2. Click Create Account
    • Account Name: Enter a name for your account (e.g., your company name)
    • Country: Select your country
  3. Under Container Setup:
    • Container name: Enter a descriptive name (e.g., YourWebsite.com - Showpass)
    • Target platform: Select Web
  4. Click Create
  5. Agree to the GTM Terms of Service
  6. You will be presented with GTM installation code snippets. You won't need to install these directly on your Showpass pages, as Showpass will use your GTM Container ID. Make a note of your GTM Container ID (e.g., GTM-XXXXXXX)

Step 2: Create a New GA4 Property (If You Don't Have One)

  1. Go to Google Analytics
  2. If you have an existing account, select it. If not, create a new Google Analytics account
  3. Navigate to the Admin section (usually a gear icon in the bottom left)
  4. In the "Property" column, click Create Property
  5. Enter a Property name (e.g., YourWebsite GA4)
  6. Set your Reporting time zone and Currency
  7. Click Next. Provide your business information (optional)
  8. Click Create
  9. For "Choose a platform," select Web
  10. Set up your data stream:
    • Website URL: Enter your main website URL (even if you're primarily tracking Showpass)
    • Stream name: Give it a name (e.g., Main Website Stream)
  11. Click Create stream
  12. A "Web stream details" page will appear. Make a note of your MEASUREMENT ID (e.g., G-XXXXXXXXXX). This is your GA4 Property ID

Step 3: Create the GA4 Configuration Tag in GTM

This tag will send basic page view data and initialize GA4 on pages where GTM is loaded.

  1. In your GTM container, go to Tags and click New
  2. Name your tag: A descriptive name like GA4 - Configuration - All Pages or Initialization
  3. Tag Configuration:
    • Click Choose a tag type to begin setup...
    • Select Google Tag
    • Tag ID: Enter your GA4 Measurement ID (e.g., G-XXXXXXXXXX) obtained in Step 2
    • No further configuration is needed in "Configuration Settings" or "Shared Event Settings" for basic setup
  4. Triggering:
    • Click Choose a trigger to make this tag fire...
    • Select the Initialization - All Pages trigger. This trigger ensures the Google Tag fires before other tags and on every page
  5. Click Save

Step 4: Add Your GTM Container ID to Showpass

  • Go to your Organization Info and click on "Analytics" section
  • Copy your GTM Container ID (e.g., GTM-XXXXXXX from Step 1) to "Google Tag Manager" field
  • Click on "Save Changes". This enables Showpass to load your GTM container on your events landings and widgets

Step 5: Publish Your GTM Container

  1. In GTM, click the Submit button in the top right corner
  2. Enter a Version Name (e.g., "Initial GA4 Setup") and an optional Version Description
  3. Click Publish

Once these steps are completed, your GTM container will be linked to your Showpass setup, and the GA4 Configuration tag will start sending page view data to your GA4 property from pages where the GTM container is loaded by Showpass.

Next, you will set up specific ecommerce tracking.