Set up Google Tag Manager for your charity site
Organizational setupTools · about 20 min · Charity owners and the volunteer maintaining the website
Google Tag Manager (GTM) is a free container that holds your site’s measurement tags — Google Analytics, Microsoft Clarity, and whatever comes later — so adding or changing one is a GTM edit, not a website code change.
On FFC sites, tags must respect the cookie consent banner: analytics only fire after a visitor consents. GTM is where that gating lives.
One container, consent first
All tags go through the one GTM container, and every tag waits for cookie consent before firing — that’s both the law in many places and FFC’s standard. Changes are versioned and published from GTM, so there’s always a record of what changed and a one-click way back.
- 1
Create the account and container
Go to tagmanager.google.com, sign in with the charity’s Google account, and create an Account (the charity) with one Web container for the site. Note the container ID (starts with GTM-).
- 2
Have FFC wire the container into the site
Send the GTM container ID to FFC in a support ticket. FFC installs the snippet consent-gated behind the site’s cookie banner, so nothing fires before a visitor agrees.
- 3
Add your tags inside GTM
Add the GA4 tag (with your Measurement ID — see the Google Analytics guide) and, if you use it, Microsoft Clarity. Use GTM’s Preview mode to confirm tags fire only after consent, then Publish a named version.
- 4
Grant individual access
Under Admin → User management, add helpers with their own Google accounts and the least permission needed. Publishing rights should stay with whoever owns analytics.
Common questions
Do we need GTM if GA4 is already on the site?
If GA4 is your only tag ever, not strictly. But the moment you add a second tool (Clarity, conversion tracking, a pixel), GTM pays for itself: one consent-gated container, versioned changes, and no website edits per tag. FFC recommends starting with GTM so growth doesn’t require rewiring.
What does “consent-gated” mean?
Tags wait until the visitor accepts the cookie banner before running. GTM supports Google’s consent mode so analytics respect the visitor’s choice — required under GDPR-style laws and standard on every FFC-built site.
Next setup guides
Stuck on any step? Text Clarke Moyer at (520) 222-8104 — every step is meant to be simple, so if something doesn't match what you see, ask.