WordPress · GTM container configuration

Prerequisites#

1. GA4 connected (events end up in your GA4 property)
2. GTM authorized (read-only, for checks and verification)
3. The GTM container snippets installed on the site

Install the container code (pick one):

• GTM4WP plugin (recommended): install Google Tag Manager for WordPress, enter the container ID — snippets and dataLayer handled automatically
• Insert Headers and Footers style plugin: first snippet in Header, second in Body
• Theme header.php: first snippet inside head, second right after body

Ecommerce plugin (WooCommerce)#

1. Install and enable GTM4WP (Google Tag Manager for WordPress)
2. GTM4WP settings → WooCommerce tab → enable Track e-commerce
3. Enable the GA4 data-layer options if you need GA4-standard ecommerce parameters

Events GTM4WP pushes into the dataLayer (GA4-standard names):

EDD (Easy Digital Downloads)#

GTM4WP 2.x no longer bundles an EDD data layer. Two options:

• Option A (recommended): in functions.php or a custom plugin, push a purchase event with ecommerce parameters on EDD hooks such as edd_complete_purchase
• Option B: use a third-party GTM data-layer plugin that supports EDD

Once pushed, the GTM-side configuration is identical to WooCommerce.

Form plugins (WPForms / Contact Form 7)#

Form submission is captured via GTM's Form Submission trigger listening to the native DOM submit event — no plugin changes needed:

• WPForms: create and embed the form; AJAX submits also dispatch the native submit event
• Contact Form 7: create the form and embed the shortcode; submits are captured the same way

Container configuration items#

The complete container configuration is as follows (identical to what the metricsKit "Import file" creates): 2 custom JavaScript variables, 4 data-layer variables, 9 triggers and 10 tags. Every tag is of type "Google Analytics: GA4 Event", using the site's bound GA4 measurement ID.

Import file structure example#

{
  "containerVersion": {
    "path": "accounts/0000000/containers/0000000/versions/0",
    "name": "metricsKit Tracking (example.com)",
    "trigger": [
      { "triggerId": "100", "name": "metricsKit - Form Submission",
        "type": "FORM_SUBMISSION", "fingerprint": "" },
      { "triggerId": "101", "name": "metricsKit - Outbound Click",
        "type": "LINK_CLICK", "fingerprint": "",
        "waitForTags": { "type": "TEMPLATE", "value": "2000" },
        "waitForTagsTimeout": { "type": "TEMPLATE", "value": "2000" },
        "checkValidation": { "type": "BOOLEAN", "value": "false" } },
      { "triggerId": "104", "name": "metricsKit - Ecommerce Purchase",
        "type": "CUSTOM_EVENT", "fingerprint": "",
        "customEventFilter": [{ "type": "EQUALS", "parameter": [
          { "type": "TEMPLATE", "key": "arg0", "value": "{{_event}}" },
          { "type": "TEMPLATE", "key": "arg1", "value": "purchase" } ] }] }
    ],
    "variable": [
      { "name": "mk - Affiliate Detector", "type": "jsm", "fingerprint": "",
        "parameter": [{ "type": "TEMPLATE", "key": "javascript",
          "value": "function(){ /* generated from your AFF patterns, per-site */ }" }] },
      { "name": "dlv - ecommerce.value", "type": "v", "fingerprint": "",
        "parameter": [{ "type": "TEMPLATE", "key": "name", "value": "ecommerce.value" }] }
    ],
    "tag": [
      { "tagId": "200", "name": "metricsKit - GA4 Event - Ecommerce Purchase",
        "type": "gaawe", "fingerprint": "",
        "parameter": [
          { "type": "TEMPLATE", "key": "measurementIdOverride", "value": "G-XXXXXXXXXX" },
          { "type": "TEMPLATE", "key": "eventName", "value": "purchase" },
          { "type": "TEMPLATE", "key": "value", "value": "{{dlv - ecommerce.value}}" },
          { "type": "TEMPLATE", "key": "items", "value": "{{dlv - ecommerce.items}}" } ],
        "firingTriggerId": ["104"] }
    ]
  }
}

GA4 configuration tag & verification#

1. If the container has no GA4 configuration tag, create one: Google Analytics (GA4) config + measurement ID G-XXXX + All Pages trigger
2. Use GTM Preview on your site: submit a form, click an outbound link, browse a product — confirm tags fire with correct parameters
3. Submit → Publish — nothing works until published
4. Confirm event arrival in Realtime after 5-30 minutes; full reports populate in 24-48 hours

References#

• GTM4WP WooCommerce settings reference: gtm4wp.com/google-tag-manager-for-woocommerce/woocommerce-settings-reference
• WooCommerce official data layer: woocommerce.com/document/datalayer-for-woocommerce
• Google Tag Manager Help: support.google.com/tagmanager