One of the features added in the new version of the export tool is the ablility to create recurring reports based on time windows that move forward in real time.
The most obvious example would be a weekly report that only contains data collected in the last week, excluding data from outside the date window.
Creating such an export is simple and consists of three main steps.
Creating the Export
This is covered in detail in the guide “Using the Export Tool”, so we recommend reading this first, and this guide will mostly cover the parts specific to creating a recurring export.
Export settings – Currently, the smart date filters can only be applied to Raw Response Data exports. So choose this export type, and choose one of the available file formats.
Customising the Export
On the “Customise” tab, click “filters”.
From the “Date range” drop-down, choose the date window you wish to use.
The Options are:
- Today (Based on your local time zone)
- Yesterday (Based on your local time zone)
- Last 7 Days (Full Days)
- Last 7 days (Current Time)
- Last Week (Mon-Sun)
- Month to Date
- Previous Month
- Year to Date
- Custom Range
The dates chosen by these options (with the exception of Custom Range, which cannot be used with scheduled and recurring exports) will be re-calculated each time the export is run.
You can also choose any of the display and other options that are avalaible for Response Data Exports.
Scheduling the Export
Clicking the Email/Schedule tab on the left of the Create Export screen will allow you to set up the schedule for running the report and if you want any automated emails to be sent when the report is run.
You can find more information about the available options for recurring exports in this guide.
For the kind of report we’re talking about in this guide, it makes sense for the recurrence frequency to match the time window chosen in the “Date range” drop-down. So for a “last week” report, you would choose “Last 7 days (Mon-Sun)” as the date range, and “1 week” as the “Repeat Every:" option.
Email Notifications
To send email notifications, switch “Send export by email” to On. Enter your intended recipient email addresses in the box that appears when the option is activated.
If you’re happy sending a default plain text email, you don’t need to do any more than this, but you can opt to send a customised version of the email by clicking the “Customise email” Option.
This will open two buttons where you can edit the email message (via a pop-up WYSIWYG editor) and preview the mail that will be sent.