> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.taginsight.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Alerts & notifications

> Understand how Tag Insight alerts you to tracking issues

## Overview

Tag Insight monitors your tracking implementation through scheduled and continuous audits. When issues are detected, you can review them in the audit reports and export them for team distribution.

<img src="https://mintcdn.com/taginsight/poFMsZzsIjoQTyP7/images/audit_report.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=poFMsZzsIjoQTyP7&q=85&s=8b2d2477f4074e92dca8b4c2092197d6" alt="Alert Dashboard" style={{borderRadius: "8px", margin: "20px 0"}} width="2874" height="1706" data-path="images/audit_report.png" />

<Note>
  Tag Insight focuses on comprehensive audit reports that can be exported and shared with your team. Check the audit reports section for detailed information on monitoring results.
</Note>

## How alerts work

### Alert generation process

<Steps>
  <Step title="Audit execution">
    Scheduled or continuous audits analyze your tracking data
  </Step>

  <Step title="Issue detection">
    The system compares live data against your tracking plan
  </Step>

  <Step title="Alert triggering">
    When discrepancies are found, alerts are generated
  </Step>

  <Step title="Email notification">
    Alert emails are sent to designated recipients
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Alert types

### Critical alerts

These require immediate attention:

* **Missing Required Events**: Key events (like purchases) not firing
* **Transaction Tracking Broken**: E-commerce tracking failures
* **Complete Event Failure**: Events that completely stop working
* **Data Type Mismatches**: Critical variables with wrong formats

### Warning alerts

Important but not immediately critical:

* **Missing Optional Variables**: Non-required data points absent
* **Value Format Issues**: Data not matching expected patterns
* **New Unknown Events**: Unplanned events detected
* **Performance Degradation**: Slow-loading tracking

### Informational alerts

For awareness and tracking:

* **Audit Completion**: Successful audit reports
* **Trend Changes**: Significant changes in event volumes
* **New Variables Detected**: Additional data being sent
* **Configuration Updates**: Changes to tracking plans

## Email notifications

### Email content

Alert emails include:

```
Subject: [Tag Insight Alert] Critical Issues Found - Main Site Production

Tag Insight has detected 3 critical issues in your tracking:

PROJECT: Main Site - Production
AUDIT: Daily Production Check
TIME: 2024-01-15 09:00 UTC
SEVERITY: Critical

ISSUES FOUND:
1. Missing Event: "purchase" 
   - Expected on: /checkout/confirmation
   - Last seen: 2024-01-14 18:45 UTC
   - Impact: High - No conversion tracking

2. Invalid Variable Type: "transaction_value"
   - Event: checkout_complete
   - Expected: number
   - Received: string ("29.99")
   - Occurrences: 145 times

3. Missing Required Variable: "transaction_id"
   - Event: purchase
   - Impact: Cannot reconcile with backend
   - Pages affected: /checkout/success, /order/complete

View Full Report: [Link to Tag Insight Dashboard]

Quick Actions:
- View Affected Pages
- See Sample Data Layers
- Download Detailed Report
```

### Email recipients

Currently, alerts are sent to:

* Project editors
* Users who configured the audit
* Additional emails specified during audit setup

## Alert severity levels

### Understanding severity

<Tabs>
  <Tab title="🔴 Critical">
    **Immediate action required**

    * Revenue-impacting issues
    * Complete tracking failures
    * Legal/compliance problems

    Example: Purchase event not firing
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="🟡 Warning">
    **Should be addressed soon**

    * Partial data loss
    * Quality issues
    * Non-critical missing data

    Example: Product category missing
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="🔵 Info">
    **For your information**

    * Successful audits
    * Minor variations
    * Trend notifications

    Example: New event detected
  </Tab>
</Tabs>

## Current alert features

### What you can do now

1. **Receive Email Alerts**: Get notified of tracking issues
2. **View in Dashboard**: Access detailed reports
3. **Export Reports**: Download full audit results
4. **Share with Team**: Forward alerts to stakeholders

### Alert timing

Based on your audit configuration:

* **Continuous Audits**: Near real-time alerts (5-15 minute delay)
* **Scheduled Audits**: Alerts sent after audit completion
* **On-Demand Audits**: Immediate results upon completion

## Best practices

### Managing alert fatigue

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Focus on critical events">
    Start by monitoring only business-critical events like purchases and key conversions
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Refine validation rules">
    Make optional variables truly optional to reduce false positives
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Use appropriate sampling">
    For high-traffic sites, sampling can reduce noise while maintaining coverage
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Regular review">
    Weekly review of alert patterns to optimize configuration
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

### Response procedures

When you receive an alert:

<Steps>
  <Step title="Assess severity">
    Check if it's critical, warning, or informational
  </Step>

  <Step title="View full report">
    Click through to Tag Insight for complete details
  </Step>

  <Step title="Identify root cause">
    * Check recent deployments
    * Review code changes
    * Verify tag manager updates
  </Step>

  <Step title="Take action">
    * Fix the issue
    * Test the fix
    * Monitor for resolution
  </Step>

  <Step title="Document">
    Record what happened and how it was resolved
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Common alert scenarios

### Scenario 1: Post-deployment issues

```
Alert: Missing Event "add_to_cart"
Cause: New deployment overwrote tracking code
Action: Restore tracking implementation
Prevention: Include tracking in deployment tests
```

### Scenario 2: Tag manager changes

```
Alert: Variable type mismatch for "price"
Cause: GTM variable format changed
Action: Update GTM configuration
Prevention: Test GTM changes before publishing
```

### Scenario 3: Third-party interference

```
Alert: New unknown events detected
Cause: Marketing team added new tool
Action: Document and incorporate into tracking plan
Prevention: Coordinate tool additions
```

## Alert history

Access your alert history in the Tag Insight dashboard:

1. Navigate to **Monitoring > Alert History**
2. Filter by:
   * Date range
   * Severity
   * Alert type
   * Resolution status
3. Export history for analysis

## Planned enhancements

<Info>
  The Tag Insight team is working on advanced alert features including Slack integration, custom alert rules, and alert routing based on event types.
</Info>

## Integration with workflows

### Current integrations

While advanced integrations are coming, you can currently:

1. **Email Forwarding**: Set up rules to forward alerts
2. **Manual Ticket Creation**: Create tickets from alert emails
3. **Dashboard Monitoring**: Keep Tag Insight dashboard open
4. **Export for Analysis**: Download data for custom processing

### Temporary workarounds

Until advanced features arrive:

```javascript theme={null}
// Example: Email filter for critical alerts
If email contains "[Tag Insight Alert] Critical"
Then: 
  - Forward to #alerts-critical Slack channel
  - Create high-priority ticket
  - Page on-call engineer
```

## FAQ

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="How quickly are alerts sent?">
    For continuous audits, alerts are typically sent within 5-15 minutes of issue detection.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I customize alert emails?">
    Currently, email format is standardized. Customization is planned for future releases.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="What if I'm getting too many alerts?">
    Review your tracking plan to ensure optional variables are marked correctly, and consider adjusting audit sampling.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can alerts be sent to multiple recipients?">
    Yes, you can specify multiple email addresses when configuring audits.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Next steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Audit reports" icon="chart-bar" href="/monitoring/audit-reports">
    Understanding detailed audit reports
  </Card>

  <Card title="Setting up audits" icon="cog" href="/monitoring/setting-up-audits">
    Configure your audit strategy
  </Card>

  <Card title="Troubleshooting" icon="wrench" href="/troubleshooting/common-issues">
    Resolve common tracking issues
  </Card>

  <Card title="Best practices" icon="star" href="/best-practices/performance">
    Optimize your monitoring setup
  </Card>
</CardGroup>