datascale

Search services, integrations and blog posts.

Check explainer

dataLayer

Without a dataLayer, tracking tools scrape values from the DOM, fragile and inconsistent.

  • to review
  • note
  • ok

What we check

Checks whether window.dataLayer is initialised and populated via push().

Why it matters

Without a dataLayer, tracking tools scrape values from the DOM, fragile and inconsistent.

Common causes

  • GTM was installed without a dataLayer concept, all triggers hang on click selectors instead of events.
  • The dataLayer gets initialised after the GTM snippet and overwrites the events already collected.
  • The shop system ships its own dataLayer under a different name, GTM listens to the standard one.
  • Events are only pushed on some templates, checkout or forms stay silent.

How to fix it

Initialise window.dataLayer before the GTM container and push() on every business event.

  • Q01
    What does a failing dataLayer finding mean?

    Without a dataLayer, tracking tools scrape values from the DOM, fragile and inconsistent. Initialise window.dataLayer before the GTM container and push() on every business event.

  • Q02
    How do you fix dataLayer?

    Initialise window.dataLayer before the GTM container and push() on every business event.