Creating an export is how you turn a question ("who opened every email last quarter?") into a repeatable data file. Data Studio walks you through the decisions in a seven-step wizard, and once the export is saved you can run it on demand or let it run on a schedule. This article covers every step of the wizard end to end.
Who does this: Act-On user on an Enterprise account or with the Data Studio add-on
Time needed: 10 to 20 minutes for your first export
Why this matters: The choices you make in each step decide what the output file will contain, how big it is, and how many tokens it costs. A well-built export answers one clear question with the smallest amount of data needed. A badly scoped export costs more tokens, takes longer, and still leaves you filtering in Excel afterwards.
Quick Reference (Advanced Users) - Click to Expand
- Go to Reports > Data Studio > Exports > New Export.
- Seven steps: name and accounts, data set and actions, grouping, fields, filters, schedule, delivery.
- Use Inclusive Filters (step 2) to cut source data early. They cost fewer tokens than exclusive filters (step 5).
- Detailed log = one row per action. Aggregated rolled-up = one row per group, with totals.
- Formats: CSV, CSV ZIP, CSV GZ, XLSX. Use ZIP or GZ for large exports.
- Default account limit is 5 exports; Account Manager can raise to 10.
- See Export from a Template for a faster path.
Try it like this: For a monthly email performance export, choose the Email Messages data set, select Sent/Opened/Clicked, pick Aggregated rolled-up data grouped by Message and Action Month, drag Message Title, Subject, Sent, Opened, and Clicked into Selected Fields, set the schedule to Monthly, and deliver as CSV. That single export replaces a recurring manual report.
What you need before you start
- An Enterprise account or the Data Studio add-on.
- An available export slot. Accounts typically start with 5. Contact your Account Manager to raise the limit (up to 10 by default).
- A clear idea of the question you want the export to answer, and which time period it covers.
Note: By default, Act-On accounts with an Enterprise package or the Data Studio add-on include 5 Data Studio exports. Contact your Account Manager if you need more.
Create a new export
- Go to Reports > Data Studio and click New Export.
- Enter a Name and Description. Name it after the question the export answers, not the data set, so it's easy to find later.
- Choose which Accounts to include:
- Parent Account Only
- All Child Accounts
- Parent and All Child Accounts
- Specific Accounts
- Click Next.
Select a data set and actions
- Pick a Data Set from Behavior Data or Profile Data:
- Behavior Data: Email Messages, Forms, Landing Pages, Media, SMS Messages, Webinars, Webpages.
- Profile Data: Lists and Segments.
- Check the Actions you want to include. Each data set has its own set. For the full list, see Choosing Actions for Data Studio Exports.
- Set any additional data options that appear for the chosen data set.
- Apply Inclusive Filters (behavioural data) or Incremental Updates (profile data). Details below.
- Click Next.
Tip: Filter out data you won't use at this step. Less source data means faster exports and lower token costs. Anything filtered out here cannot be retrieved later in the same export run.
Inclusive Filters (behavioural data)
Inclusive filters limit the source data to specific assets. You can filter by:
- Email Messages: Campaigns, Messages, Automated Programs.
- Forms: Campaigns, Forms.
- Landing Pages: Campaigns, Landing Pages.
- Media: Campaigns, Media.
- Webinars: Campaigns, Webinars.
- Webpages: Allowlist, Blocklist.
Incremental Updates (profile data)
Incremental updates only include contacts that have changed since the export last ran. You can choose:
- Contacts modified since the last run.
- Contacts created since the last run.
The first run includes every contact in the selected list or segment. Subsequent runs include only contacts added or updated after the previous run's date. This setting is best suited to exports that run on a repeating schedule.
Heads up: Incremental updates reflect new contacts in the list or segment. They do not reflect existing contacts who have since entered a segment through changed behaviour.
Set grouping and granularity
Choose how the output rows should be grouped:
- Detailed log data: one row for every interaction, no grouping. Best if you're going to analyse the data in Excel or a BI tool.
- Aggregated rolled-up data: one row per selected grouping, with totals. Best if the export is the final report.
Tip: Aggregated field names are colour-coded. Blue and black attributes always apply to every data point. Red attributes reflect standard fields on your account; totals in red columns may be blank if that standard field isn't used across every marketing activity.
Set your grouping, then click Next.
Add fields
- Choose a field type from the Available Fields drop-down. Select <All> to see everything.
- Drag and drop the fields you want into the Selected Fields box. Column order in the output matches the order here.
- Check or uncheck Generate as Unique Metrics. When checked, counts reflect unique contacts rather than total actions (for example, unique opens rather than total opens).
- Click Next.
Add data filtering (optional)
By default no filters are applied at this stage. Add them here to exclude specific records from the output. These filters run after the source data has already been pulled, so they cost more tokens than Step 2 inclusive filters. Filters are case-sensitive, and each filter goes on its own line.
- Click Click here to create filters.
- Choose the field to filter on from the first dropdown.
- Choose a condition from the second dropdown.
- Enter the value to match against.
- Click Accept to save the filter.
- Click Next.
Set the schedule
Exports can run on demand or on a recurring schedule:
- On-Demand: you click Generate whenever you want the data.
- Daily or Weekly: Monday through Sunday, pulling data for the previous 1 to 7 days.
- Monthly: runs on the first of the month and exports the previous month's data.
Set the schedule, then click Next.
Tip: The time of day when you click Save is used as the time for future scheduled runs.
Set delivery options
- Choose the export's Destination. The default is a downloadable file. SFTP and Cloud Storage destinations appear here if they've already been set up. See Configuring Destinations for Data Studio Exports.
- Enter a File Name. Tick Append Date if you want each run's file to have a date stamp.
- Choose the Format:
- CSV
- CSV ZIP
- CSV GZ
- XLSX
- Set Notifications if you want email alerts when the export completes. Notifications can go to as many recipients as needed.
- Click Next.
Tip: ZIP or GZ formats are best for large exports. The XLSX format is capped at 10,000 rows.
Finish
Click Finish to save the export definition. You can now generate it on demand, or wait for the schedule to run it. See the Data Studio FAQs for answers to common questions about export behaviour, uniques, and data availability.
Common pitfalls
- Skipping step 2 filters and using step 5 exclusive filters instead. It works, but it costs more tokens and runs slower. Filter at the source when you can.
- Choosing XLSX for a big export. The format is capped at 10,000 rows. Use CSV or CSV ZIP for anything larger.
- Forgetting that detailed log exports have a row per action, not per contact. A single active contact can produce dozens of rows.
- Naming exports after the data set ("Email Export"). Name them after the question ("Monthly Email Performance Rollup") so they're easy to find in the list later.
- Expecting exclusive filters to fix data omitted at step 2. Once source data is excluded upstream, it isn't available later in the same run.
What you've unlocked: You have a repeatable, scheduled export ready to deliver. Combine it with other exports using a package (see Merging Data and Exports in Data Studio), or deliver it to an SFTP or cloud location by configuring a destination.