It might seem simple, but there is actually a wealth of information behind the clicks on your website that you ought to know. Learning how to track button clicks will get you closer to understanding how your visitors interact with your website. For instance, you can know what your audience is interested in and what CTAs work best for them just from a button click. In this article, we will show how to track button clicks in Google Analytics 4 through simple, broken-down steps (with screenshots!) that you can immediately implement. Let's dive in!
➡️🎥 Check our YouTube Channel for more Google Analytics Tutorials!
How to Track Button Clicks in Google Analytics 4
Step 1: Install GTM to your website
Install a Google Tag Manager container tag on the back of all your website pages (like a Google Analytics tag). To do so, follow these steps:
1. Access the new container you're working with
2. Click on Admin
3. Click on Install Google Tag Manager
4. Copy the script and install it on all your website pages*
Depending on the website technology (e.g. WordPress, Wix, Shopify), some websites would not ask for the full tracking code, but will only require the Google Tag Manager Container ID. To find the container ID, you can go to Admin > Container Panel and it will be at the top of the second column.
Step 2: Enable Enhanced Measurement
The new version of Google Analytics has a new feature called "Enhanced Measurement" which allows you to track events by default. To enable this feature, follow the steps below:
1. Click on Admin
2. Click on Data Streams
3. Click on your property
4. An option for Enhanced Measurement will show up. Click on the Settings icon.
5. A list of events that can be tracked by default will show up. Click on the toggle to enable the options and click Save.
We recommend enabling all the options for default tracking so you don't have to set up events for these activities. But, if you want to track a specific action that is not specified on this list, you can follow the steps ahead.
Step 3: Enable GTM Variables
If you want to track a specific button on your website (like a CTA button or an anchor, etc) or a specific action on your website, you need to set it up in Google Tag Manager.
1. Access Google Tag Manager
2. Click Variables
3. Click Configure
4. Scroll down and find Clicks. Enable all the options that are relevant to Clicks (all Clicks variables)
5. Submit and publish the changes
Step 4: Set Up the Tag
A tag defines where the event will live, which in this case is the GA4.
1. Click Add a new tag
2. Name the tag as the event you'd like to track
3. Click on Tag Configuration
4. Select Google Analytics: GA4 Event
5. Insert the Event Name. This event name is what will show up in your GA4 account when the tracked event is activated and recorded.
6.1. Click on Configuration Tag. Select GA4 from the dropdown*
6.2. *If you are a new user, you will need to manually insert the property ID / Measurement ID of your GA4 account.
Step 5: Set Up the Trigger
A trigger defines when the event is going to send information back to Google Analytics.
1. Click on Triggering
2. Click Plus symbol to add a trigger
3. Name the trigger
4. Click on Trigger Configuration
5. Choose Trigger Type
Think about what you want to track for the event. If you want to track clicks, you can select Click (All Elements). There is an option for us to track All Clicks or Some Clicks. However, we need to know first which click we want to track and its parameters (which we will discuss further below). So, for now, we will select All Clicks.
6. Save the tag
Note that the trigger for this event is still incorrect (as it still tracks All Clicks instead of Some Clicks that we actually want to track). Now, to understand what exactly we want to track and define the parameters, we have to first preview the tag manager.
Step 6: Preview the Tag
1. Click Preview
2. A new tab will automatically open from Google Tag Assistant
3. Insert the URL of the page we want to get data from
4. Click the Start button
5. The Tag Assistant will open the page with a connected Debugger on it
Step 7: Preview the Button
1. Click the button you want to track on the page
2. Navigate back to Tag Assistant. The Tag Assistant page will show the sequence of the actions (i.e. which buttons are being clicked).
2. Click Variables
The variables are what make the click unique and act as an identifier of the specific button that was clicked. The variables that are shown are the variables that were enabled in Step 3: Enable GTM Variables. We are going to use the variables here to set up the trigger.
Step 8: Configure the Trigger
Now that we know the exact variables/parameters of the button click we'd like to track, we can configure the trigger using this information.
1. Navigate back to Tag Manager and navigate to Trigger
2. Select the Trigger you'd like to adjust
3. Click the Pen symbol to edit the Trigger
4. Select Some Clicks
5. Navigate back to Tag Assistant Variables and copy Click Text
6. Navigate back to Tag Manager and select Click Text equals [Insert copied Click Text] from the dropdown
7. Click the + symbol to add another parameter
8. Navigate back to Tag Assistant Variables and copy Click URL
9. Navigate back to Tag Manager and select Click URL equals [Insert copied Click URL] from the dropdown
10. Save the Trigger
This is how we define a unique click and tell the system that we want to track the specific click. The Tag will only send information back to Google Analytics when someone clicks on a button with the exact parameter we have set up.
Step 9: Save the setup, submit the container, and publish the changes
Step 10: Verify that the event is working
We need to verify that the implementation of the event is correct and working. To do this, you can use the debugger on Google Analytics 4 or through the Tag Manager Preview.
Option 1: DebugView in Google Analytics 4
1. Navigate to DebugView in GA4
2. Refresh the website page
3. Click on the button you'd like to test
4. Navigate back to DebugView in GA4
We should be able to see if an event is registered. However, in order to verify further that the implementation is correct, it is better to do a second check through Google Tag Manager.
Option 2: Google Tag Manager
You can follow the same steps as Step 5: Preview the Tag.
1. Navigate to Google Tag Manager and click Preview at GTM
2. Insert the URL
3. Start the debugger mode
4. Click on the button we want to trigger
5. Navigate back to the Tag Manager
6. Select Link Clicks
7. Check if the tag is triggered (fired)
Frequently Asked Questions on Tracking Button Clicks in Google Analytics 4
Can I track multiple button clicks on the same page in GA4?
Yes, you can track multiple button clicks on the same page by creating individual custom events for each button you wish to track, giving each one a distinct event name or custom parameter. For example, you can use various event names like "signup_button_click" and "download_button_click" and set up parameters from various button text or button ID to distinguish between different button interactions.
Can I track clicks on non-link buttons in GA4?
Yes, you can track clicks on buttons that are not HTML links using the "All Elements" trigger in GTM, and set the trigger type to "Some Clicks" with conditions to target the specific button(s) you want to track, such as "Click ID", "Click Text", "Click Classes", etc.. This allows you to track clicks on any clickable element on your website, such as "Add to Cart", "Submit",etc, even for elements that are not traditional HTML links.
Where can I see the button click data in GA4 reports?
Once you've set up the button click tracking, you can view the data in various reports:
1. Events Report
Go to Reports > Engagement > Events
You will see the individual button click events that you have tracked using Google Tag Manager.
You can filter, segment, and analyze the button click data based on the event name and any custom parameters you have configured.
2. Explorations:
Go to Reports > Explore
In the Explorations report, you can create custom analyses, visualizations, segmentation to dive deeper into the button click data.
For example, you can create a table or chart to show the top clicked buttons, the button click rate, or the conversion rate of button clicks.
3. Custom Reports:
Go to Reports > Customize
Create custom reports to display the button click data in a way that aligns with your specific reporting needs.
4. Conversions Report:
Go to Configure > Conversions
View conversion events if you’ve set up button clicks as conversions.
Can I use button click data for audience segmentation in GA4?
Yes, you can use button click data to create custom audiences in GA4 and leverage those for targeting, personalization, or analysis purposes.
In the GA4 interface, go to the Audiences section.
Create a new audience and use the custom dimensions you created as conditions to define the audience.
For example, you could create an audience for users who clicked on the "Add to Cart" button on the product pages.
Are there any best practices for setting up button click tracking in GA4?
Best practices in setting up button click tracking include:
Only track the most important button clicks to avoid data overload
Use descriptive and consistent event names and parameters for easy identification and organization
Test thoroughly before deploying to production
Continuously monitor the data and adjust the tracking as needed
Utilize event parameters to capture additional context and details about the interactions
Thank you! This is so helpful!!!