Google Tag Manager¶

Google Tag Manager (GTM) is the recommended deployment method for most websites. It lets you add Waulter without modifying your site's source code and provides built-in consent management support.

Why GTM?¶

Two approaches¶

There are two ways to deploy Waulter through GTM. Choose the one that fits your level of control:

Community Template + Scaffold (recommended)¶

The Waulter Community Template provides a point-and-click interface for SDK configuration. The GTM Scaffold adds pre-built variables and triggers for purpose-level consent control.

• No custom code required
• 79 variables + 17 triggers + 2 tags, pre-wired
• Category-level and purpose-level consent gating
• Quick setup — import and configure

Community Template Guide GTM Scaffold Guide

Custom HTML Tag¶

A Custom HTML tag gives you full control over SDK initialisation, loading order, and advanced patterns like appendDocument.

• Custom timing and loading strategies
• Purpose-level tag firing logic you write yourself
• Integration with existing consent stacks
• Dynamic configuration from server-side rendering

Custom HTML Guide

Prerequisites¶

Before you start, ensure you have:

• [x] A Waulter account with a configured website
• [x] Your Configuration ID (e.g. AG0000) or Scenario ID (e.g. SC00009)
• [x] A GTM container installed on your website
• [x] Your domain added to the Whitelisted Domains list in the Waulter dashboard

How the SDK integrates with GTM¶

When you set useGtm: true in your configuration, the SDK automatically:

1. Defines window.gtag if not already present (as a dataLayer.push wrapper)
2. Pushes gtm.init_consent to signal consent initialisation
3. Sets default consent — all Google consent signals to denied
4. Pushes lifecycle events — Waulter:Loaded, Waulter:Open, Waulter:Decision, Waulter:Closed
5. Updates consent signals via gtag('consent', 'update', ...) when the visitor decides

flowchart LR
    A[GTM loads] --> B[Waulter tag fires]
    B --> C["Default consent: all denied"]
    C --> D{Existing consent?}
    D -->|Yes| E["Update signals from stored consent"]
    D -->|No| F[Show banner]
    F --> G[Visitor decides]
    G --> H["Update consent signals"]
    H --> I["Consent-dependent tags fire"]
    E --> I

Using consent triggers for other tags¶

After Waulter is deployed, you can control when other tags fire based on the visitor's consent decision.

Example: Fire Google Analytics only after consent¶

1. In GTM, create a Custom Event trigger with event name Waulter:Decision.
2. Add a condition: use a Custom JavaScript Variable to check if analytics purposes are accepted.
3. Assign this trigger to your GA4 Configuration tag.

// GTM Custom JavaScript Variable: "Waulter - web analysis allowed?"
function() {
  var purposes = {{Waulter_Purposes}};
  if (Array.isArray(purposes)) {
    return purposes.includes("PU061") ||
           purposes.includes("PU046") ||
           purposes.includes("PU050");
  }
  return false;
}

See Events & Data Layer for the full list of events and purpose codes.

Importing the scaffold¶

The Waulter GTM Scaffold is a downloadable GTM container export (JSON) with 79 variables, 17 triggers, and 2 tags — all pre-wired for Waulter consent control.

1. Download waulter_gtm_scaffold.json from the Waulter GTM GitHub repository
2. In GTM, go to Admin > Import Container
3. Choose Merge > Rename conflicting tags, triggers, and variables
4. Review and confirm

Full scaffold documentation