The select_promotion event
select_promotion is the click counterpart to view_promotion in GA4's recommended e-commerce set. You fire it when a user interacts with an internal promotional banner or slot. It carries promotion_id, promotion_name, creative_name, creative_slot, and items so you can join clicks back to impressions and read which on-site placements drive engagement with featured products.
What this means
select_promotion fires when a user clicks or taps an internal promotion previously surfaced with view_promotion. Sharing the same promotion and creative parameters means the two events describe the same placement from impression to interaction.
It is a recommended event, so populating its documented parameters feeds GA4's promotion reporting without custom dimensions.
Joining clicks to impressions
Because promotion_id, creative_name, and creative_slot match across view_promotion and select_promotion, you can attribute each click to a specific impression context. The items array carries the featured products, letting you trace promotion clicks through to product views and purchases.
- Same promotion_id/creative fields as view_promotion
- items: products featured in the promotion
- Enables impression-to-click analysis per slot
How it appears in analytics and logs
A select_promotion event means a user engaged with an internal promotional creative. A high view-to-select ratio indicates a placement that earns attention.
Diagnostic use case
Measure interactions with internal promotions and compare them to impressions to gauge placement effectiveness.
What WebmasterID can help detect
WebmasterID can record promotion clicks first-party so on-site merchandising can be measured without cross-site identifiers.
Common mistakes
- Using different creative naming than the matching view_promotion.
- Firing select_promotion for external ad clicks instead of ad_click.
- Omitting items, breaking promotion-to-product attribution.
Privacy and accuracy notes
Promotion and creative parameters are content metadata, not personal data. Keep PII out of event payloads. Educational, not legal advice.
Related pages
- The view_promotion event
view_promotion is a GA4 recommended e-commerce event for internal merchandising. You fire it when a promotion — a banner, hero slot, or campaign creative inside your own site — becomes visible. It carries promotion_id, promotion_name, creative_name, and creative_slot, plus an items array. Paired with select_promotion, it measures the on-site impact of promotional placements distinct from external ad campaigns.
- The select_item event
select_item is a GA4 recommended e-commerce event that fires when a visitor clicks a product inside a list — selecting an item from a category grid, search results, or carousel. It carries the item plus the item_list_id and item_list_name it was chosen from. Paired with view_item_list, it turns impressions into click-through, showing which merchandising surfaces actually drive product views.
- E-commerce events: the funnel before purchase
E-commerce events are a recommended set that model the shopping funnel before and around purchase: view_item, add_to_cart, begin_checkout, add_payment_info, and purchase. Each shares a common items array, so the same product schema flows through the journey. Implemented consistently, they let you see where buyers drop off — and they carry product data, never buyer identity.
- CTA tracking
Measure clicks on internal promotions.
Sources and verification notes
Last reviewed 2026-06-24. Facts are checked against primary/official sources where available; uncertain specifics are marked “Data not yet verified” rather than guessed.