Dynamic Remarketing

Dynamic remarketing shows ads featuring the specific products or content a user viewed on your site. It requires passing item data to Google Ads via the dataLayer so the ad system knows what to show. This recipe covers the ecommerce dataLayer structure, Google Ads tag configuration, and how to adapt it for non-ecommerce sites.

How dynamic remarketing works

1. A user views a product page → your site pushes item data to the dataLayer
2. Google Ads tag reads the item data and sends it to Google’s servers
3. When that user later browses other sites, Google Ads shows them an ad featuring that specific product

The key is that the product/item data must be in the dataLayer before the Google Ads Remarketing tag fires.

Ecommerce dataLayer setup

GA4 ecommerce events automatically carry item data that Google Ads can use. Push GA4-format ecommerce events on every page where remarketing should trigger.

dataLayer.push() view_item

Push on product detail pages. This feeds both GA4 ecommerce and Google Ads remarketing.

window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || [];

// Always clear ecommerce before pushing new data
window.dataLayer.push({ ecommerce: null });

window.dataLayer.push({
  event: 'view_item',
  ecommerce: {
    currency: 'USD',
    value: 49.99,
    items: [{
      item_id: 'SKU-12345',
      item_name: 'Running Shoes Pro',
      item_category: 'Footwear',
      item_brand: 'BrandName',
      item_variant: 'Blue / Size 10',
      price: 49.99,
      quantity: 1,
      index: 0
    }]
  }
});

For category and search pages, use view_item_list:

window.dataLayer.push({ ecommerce: null });
window.dataLayer.push({
  event: 'view_item_list',
  ecommerce: {
    item_list_name: 'Search Results',
    items: [
      { item_id: 'SKU-001', item_name: 'Product A', price: 29.99 },
      { item_id: 'SKU-002', item_name: 'Product B', price: 39.99 },
      { item_id: 'SKU-003', item_name: 'Product C', price: 19.99 }
    ]
  }
});

GTM Configuration

1. Create Data Layer Variables for ecommerce data

   • DLV - ecommerce.items → Data Layer Variable name: ecommerce.items
   • DLV - ecommerce.value → ecommerce.value
   • DLV - ecommerce.currency → ecommerce.currency

2. Create a Google Ads Remarketing tag

   • Tag type: Google Ads Remarketing
   • Conversion ID: your Google Ads Conversion ID (from Google Ads → Tools → Conversions → Tag Setup)
   • Remarketing parameters:
     • items → {{DLV - ecommerce.items}}
     • value → {{DLV - ecommerce.value}}
     • currency → {{DLV - ecommerce.currency}}

3. Create Custom Event Triggers

   Create triggers for each ecommerce event you want to use for remarketing:

   • Custom Event: view_item
   • Custom Event: view_item_list
   • Custom Event: add_to_cart
   • Custom Event: purchase

   Assign all four as triggers to the Remarketing tag.

4. Test with Google Tag Assistant

   Install the Google Tag Assistant Chrome extension. Visit a product page and verify the Remarketing tag fires with items data populated.

Tag Configuration

Google Ads Remarketing

Type

Google Ads Remarketing

Trigger

Custom Events - view_item, add_to_cart, purchase

Variables

DLV - ecommerce.itemsDLV - ecommerce.valueDLV - ecommerce.currency

Non-ecommerce dynamic remarketing

If you run a non-ecommerce site (SaaS, travel, real estate, finance), you can still use dynamic remarketing with custom parameters that map to your Google Ads feed.

dataLayer.push() view_listing

For real estate, travel, or SaaS — map to your Google Ads custom feed.

// Real estate example
window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || [];
window.dataLayer.push({
  event: 'view_listing',
  remarketing_items: [{
    id: 'PROPERTY-9876',
    name: '2BR Apartment Downtown',
    category: 'apartment',
    price: 2500,
    location: 'New York, NY'
  }],
  remarketing_pagetype: 'offerdetail',
  remarketing_totalvalue: 2500
});

Configure the Google Ads Remarketing tag with:

• ecomm_pagetype → {{DLV - remarketing_pagetype}}
• ecomm_totalvalue → {{DLV - remarketing_totalvalue}}

Or create a custom parameter mapping that aligns with your Business Data feed in Google Ads.

Linking GA4 and Google Ads audiences

For the most effective remarketing, link your GA4 property to Google Ads:

1. In GA4 → Admin → Google Ads Links → Add Link
2. Connect your Google Ads account
3. Enable Personalized Advertising data sharing

This allows GA4 audiences (like “viewed product but did not purchase”) to sync to Google Ads automatically, without needing a separate Remarketing tag for every touchpoint.

Test it

1. Open GTM Preview and visit a product page
2. Verify the view_item ecommerce event fires in the Summary pane
3. Check the Google Ads Remarketing tag is in Tags Fired
4. Click the tag to inspect parameters — verify items contains your product data
5. Use Google Tag Assistant → Test to see the remarketing hit details

Common gotchas

Items array is not being read correctly. If {{DLV - ecommerce.items}} returns undefined, check that you pushed ecommerce.items (not ecommerce[0].item_id). The variable name should be ecommerce.items — the GTM Data Layer Variable handles nested dot-notation paths.

Always clear ecommerce first. GTM’s data model is additive. If you push view_item on product A then view_item on product B without clearing, the items array from product A persists in the data model and contaminates product B’s event. Always push { ecommerce: null } before every ecommerce push.

Consent mode blocks remarketing. If you have Consent Mode configured and a user declines ad storage, the Remarketing tag should not fire. Make sure your Consent Mode implementation has ad_storage set correctly.

Enhanced Conversions Setup Add hashed user data to Google Ads conversion tags.

Consent Mode with Cookiebot Ensure remarketing respects consent correctly.