Get advanced level skills at Google Tag Manager
Turn your website into a tracking machine by mastering GTM
Online course: Advanced Google Tag Manager
By Simo Ahava,
Co-Founder @ Simmer Oy
Course length: 6h 19min
Some of the companies that train their teams at CXL:
Do you feel like you know Google Tag Manager, but there’s a lot more to know?
Here’s your chance to master Google Tag Manager’s complexities with Google Developer Expert Simo Ahava.
Once you’re ready to move past the basics, you need to realize that GTM is a javascript deployment machine. As an advanced level GTM user, you need to know how to work with APIs, data layer and event tracking.
This is what this course is about.
Course overview
In this 9-lesson training program, you’ll learn
- GTM and the GTM data model, useful Javascript skills, and how to automate tasks using the GTM programmatic API
- Customizing GTM event tracking to track interactions on a site
- Customizing your Google Analytics setup using Tasks API, hitCallback, the Google Analytics Settings variable, and regular expressions
- Ins and outs of the dataLayer
- Turning GTM into a true force of power in your data organization
Get more confidence with the technology stack of the web
Google Tag Manager sits firmly in the fascinating interface between different parts of the organization: marketing, IT, HR, sales, and products & services.
To understand this interplay between the different departments of an organization and the systems they use to communicate data to and from the website, it’s important to understand the web browser and how GTM is firmly entrenched in the capabilities and limitations that the browser technology stack imposes.
This course will help you understand the dynamic nature of JavaScript, and how things like event tracking and DOM manipulation can both work for you and against you.
Skills you will master
Jesper Reinholdt, Digital Business Optimization Consultant @ Atcore
A lot of hands on examples of truly advanced GTM principles.
Fabricio Macias, Chief Business Development Officer @ Macfor Marketing
Deep content. Simo has a giant library in his blog, but it’s way different to take his course.
Learn ins and outs of Data Layer
It’s not hyperbole to say that the Data Layer is what makes GTM tick. To many, Data Layer is just a JavaScript Array that feeds data into Google Tag Manager. However, this is only a very small part of the whole picture.
In this course, you’ll learn about the multiple faces of the Data Layer. You’ll understand how the Array is actually just a message bus, feeding messages to Google Tag Manager’s internal data model. You’ll learn how Google Tag Manager introduces an imitation of “state” in the browser, and how you can use this to your advantage when passing data to and from the website.
Understanding the interplay between the website, the Data Layer, and Google Tag Manager is vital if you want to make the most of the tool.
Understand how Google Tag Manager works under the hood
Much of this course will be about how Google Tag Manager works under the hood. It’s not just a theoretical exercise, though, as the learning curve of GTM is very steep and necessarily involves understanding how things like GTM’s data model, event tracking, and end-to-end debugging work. These lessons can be easily translated to actual use cases, and you can use this knowledge to make the container more than just the sum of its parts.
JavaScript is ever-present when talking about “advanced” Google Tag Manager. The deeper you plunge into GTM, the fuzzier the line between Google Tag Manager and JavaScript become. At some point, you’ll find yourself coding more JavaScript than using the GTM UI in your daily work. The tips and tricks shared in this course will help you get a better grasp of the JavaScript paradigm you’ll need to subscribe to if you want to make the most of Google Tag Manager.
Fabio Vanden Broeck, Analytics & Tracking Specialist @ Mediagrif Interactive Technologies Inc.
What made me take this course was that Simo was the curator. I was able to understand the data model GTM has, and also customize information being sent thanks to the customTask, having real problems and applications.
Jurri Gerretsen, Web Analyst @ Roompot
The Advanced GTM course provides a deeper understanding about the fundamentals Google Tag Manager is built on. It is a challenging course but with this knowledge you can face any non-ordinary GTM implementation.
Thomas Scoggins, Freelance Web Analyst
The course lays out the landscape for anyone wanting to level up, expand their understanding, and really begin to unlock the full power of Google Tag Manager. The example code/mini assignments and powerpoint slides are great resources to refer back to.
This course is right for you if…
- You want to learn how to best utilize GTM and how to use JavaScript for customizing web analytics tracking
- You want to know how to make GTM management easier with the API
- You need help with GTM or web tracking JavaScript issues
This course is probably not for you if…
- JavaScript is alien to you, and you have no motivation to learn it
- You are looking for a deep-dive into mobile GTM or the GTM programmatic API
- You are only just starting with GTM and don’t like technical descriptions, live coding, or browser developer tools
- Web analytics deployment and implementation is not important to you, or you think GTM replaces your IT department or developers
- You are looking for a beginner-friendly GTM course. We also got you covered there.
Skills you should have
- Intermediate understanding of how GTM works, especially how tags, triggers, and variables interact
- Basic scripting skills and understanding of JavaScript, especially DOM manipulation (you’ve taken Codecademy’s intro course or equivalent).
- Basic understanding of how the web browser works, especially when it comes to event tracking, the Data Layer, and Chrome’s developer tools
Simo Ahava is a recognized expert on customizing web analytics and tag management solutions to improve the entire “life cycle” of data collection, processing, and reporting. His main areas of expertise lie with Google Analytics and Google Tag Manager. Google has appointed him as a Google Developer Expert in these fields.
Simo holds the position of Co-Founder at Simmon Oy. He also writes a popular blog on all things Google Analytics and Google Tag Manager development at www.simoahava.com.
Get a lesson preview
Your full course curriculum:
Advanced Google Tag Manager
1 Welcome to the Course
2 Event Tracking Under The Hood
3 Custom Event Listeners
4 The Tracker Object
5 customTask
6 Enhanced Ecommerce
7 API Outline And Resources
8 Build Your Own API Tool
9 Templates Introduction
10 Build Your Own Custom Template
11 Wrapping Up
Show off your hard-earned skills and strengthen your profile.
LinkedIn found that people who add credentials to their profile receive 6x more profile views than those who don’t.
Add your certificates to your profile, share your accomplishments with the world, and join our alumni network.
Subscribe to CXL and get access
- 120+ courses (full list here) on all aspects of data-driven marketing (new courses added every month)
- 10 minidegrees that give you advanced level skills
Got a team, multiple users? Get our Teams All-Access plan instead.
The CXL guarantee
- 7-day no questions asked money back period
- You can immediately apply learnings and improve your results.
Need help convincing your boss?
Click here for a pitch deck, swipe files and tips.
Subscribe to CXL
Get access to this and 100+ other training programs.
or
Learn Google Tag Manager: FAQ
Who is this course for?
- You want to learn how to best utilize GTM and how to use JavaScript for customizing web analytics tracking
- You want to know how to make GTM management easier with the API
- You need help with GTM or web tracking JavaScript issues
Some careers that will especially benefit from this course are data analyst, digital analytics specialist, marketing analyst, web developer, SEO specialist and digital marketing manager.
What will you learn?
After taking this course, you will master:
- GTM and the GTM data model, useful Javascript skills, and how to automate tasks using the GTM programmatic API
- Customizing GTM event tracking to track interactions on a site
- Customizing your Google Analytics setup using Tasks API, hitCallback, the Google Analytics Settings variable, and regular expressions
- Ins and outs of the dataLayer
- Turning GTM into a true force of power in your data organization
What does the course include?
Our Advanced Google Tag Manager training includes 12 lessons, 0 downloadable resources, 6h 19min of video material, several assignments, and a final exam.
Are subtitles available for the lessons?
Lessons have English subtitles and transcriptions available.
Will I receive a certificate of completion?
After taking this course, you will receive the Advanced Google Tag Manager Certification from CXL, with credentials that you can add to your LinkedIn profile.
What is the refund policy?
All plans come with a 7-day refund period .
How long will it take for me to finish it?
This is entirely up to you – it’s how many study hours per week you can put in. This course is 6h 19min long.