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GTM tracking live setup: Google Tag Manager and GA4, step by step

A live session with Chris Cerra — building a full tracking setup with Google Tag Manager and GA4 from scratch, including enhanced conversions, events and the dataLayer.

8 min read

Originally written in German — read it on visnakovs.de.

Google Tag Manager live setup session with Chris Cerra

In this live session I build a professional tracking setup with Google Tag Manager and GA4 from the ground up, together with Chris Cerra of RemoteBase — step by step, no theory overhead.

WatchAdvanced Google Tag Manager Tracking LIVE setup with Chris CerraOpens on YouTube

What you get out of the session

Not a talk — a working session. I go through a real project and put a complete tracking setup in place.

1. Building the GTM container structure properly

A clean Google Tag Manager container is the foundation. In the session I show:

  • Naming conventions: consistent names for tags, triggers and variables — so you still know what does what in six months
  • Folder structure: grouped by platform (GA4, Google Ads, Meta) and by type (pageview, events, conversions)
  • dataLayer architecture: which events get pushed where and when — and why dataLayer.push() should load before the GTM snippet

2. GA4 events and enhanced conversions

GA4 is event-based. In the session I configure:

  • Standard events: page_view, scroll, click — the base layer for any site
  • Custom events: generate_lead, form_submit, phone_click — the ones that actually count
  • Enhanced conversions: hashed first-party data (email, phone) goes back to Google — better attribution even without third-party cookies

3. Debugging and validation

A setup is only as good as its validation:

  • GTM preview mode: live-test every tag configuration before you publish
  • GA4 DebugView: real-time check that events arrive correctly
  • Google Tag Assistant: browser extension for quick checks

Why a live setup beats any tutorial

Most GTM tutorials show the ideal scenario. Reality looks different: CMS restrictions, missing dataLayer variables, consent management cutting in halfway through. In this session you see those real problems — and how I solve them.

Key takeaways

  • dataLayer first: define the dataLayer before you build a single tag
  • Fewer tags, more structure: ten clean tags beat forty chaotic ones
  • Turn enhanced conversions on: mandatory for anyone running Google Ads
  • Test, test, test: no tag goes live without a preview-mode check
  • Naming conventions: they save hours when something breaks

About Chris Cerra

Chris Cerra is the founder of RemoteBase and works with startups and scale-ups on their digital infrastructure. In the session he brings the business owner’s perspective: what does tracking have to deliver for the decisions to get better?

Want your tracking set up properly rather than patched together? Write to me.