Common Critical Error Patterns

In addition to general debugging tips, below are recurring error patterns we’ve observed across client implementations. These are generalized so you can recognize and resolve similar issues in your own setup.

1. Outdated Custom Templates

⚠ Symptom: Tags built on old custom templates show 100% error rates across all calls.

🧠 Background: Templates not updated for years may contain deprecated methods or mismatched logic.

Example cases:

• ICOMM Conversion Script template → 100% error rate on Soicos tags (gtm.js, addToCart, orderPlaced).
• RTB House variable template (not updated in 5+ years) → persistent tag failures.

Fix:

• Review Last modified date in GTM Templates.
• Rebuild or update old templates.
• Prefer officially maintained templates.

2. Two-Step Conversion Tags (Soicos Case)

⚠ Symptom: Conversion tags fail at both page load and order confirmation events.

🧠 Background: Some affiliate tags (e.g., Soicos) rely on cookies set at the landing page before validating conversions.

Common pitfalls:

1. Custom event check mismatch — Data Layer event name doesn’t match (e.g., orderPlaced).
2. UTM dependency — Template expects utm_source=soicos or gclid, but these are missing on conversion events.
3. Cookie dependency — Validation cookie is never written if no landing page tag fires first.

Fix:

• Implement as a two-step setup:
1. Landing Page tag → fires on all entry pages, sets cookie when UTMs present.
2. Conversion tag → fires on order event, validates cookie, sends pixel.
• Ensure Data Layer event names match exactly.

3. Script Timing Issues (Teads Case)

⚠ Symptom: Errors across multiple triggers (cart, orderPlaced, profile, payment).

🧠 Background: When a single Custom HTML tag contains both configuration and async library load, order of execution is not guaranteed.

Example: HAVAS Teads PageView tag.

• window.teads_adv_id and window.teads_e defined after async library call → initialization errors.

Fix:

Define configuration before loading the async script:

<script>
  window.teads_e = window.teads_e || [];
  window.teads_adv_id = 20288;
</script>
<script src="https://p.teads.tv/teads-fellow.js" async></script>

4. Missing Library Dependencies (BlueKai Case)

⚠ Symptom: 100% failure for Custom HTML tags that rely on unavailable third-party libraries.

🧠 Background: If the external URL is unavailable, tags never execute successfully.

Example: BlueKai tag calling tags.bkrtx.com/js/bk-coretag.js → library unreachable → 134k failed calls.

Fix:

• Validate external script availability before deployment.
• If URL is deprecated, contact vendor or replace with maintained tag template.

5. Continuous Error Impact (RTB House Case)

⚠ Symptom: 100% error rate across all RTB House tags, with persistent console errors.

🧠 Impact:

• Slower page rendering and cluttered console (developer UX).
• Missing user/conversion data → incomplete retargeting audiences, reduced ROAS.

Root cause: Outdated variable template in tag configuration.

Fix: Update to supported template or rebuild configuration.

6. False Error Signals (Google Ads Global Issue)

⚠ Symptom: Google Ads tags marked as failed despite conversions flowing correctly.

🧠 Background: Known Google-side bug (linked to Enhanced Conversions).

Impact:

• Errors pollute logs and may cause unnecessary troubleshooting.
• No real impact on conversion tracking.

Fix:

• Monitor but do not alter implementation.
• Inform teams that failures are false positives.