How to export and share Smartlook insights with your GTM team

If you’re part of a GTM (go-to-market) team drowning in dashboards, you know how easy it is for good insights to get lost in a sea of analytics. This guide is for marketers, product folks, and anyone trying to wrangle meaningful user data from Smartlook and actually use it to get results. No fluff—just practical steps, real-world caveats, and ways to avoid the classic “analysis paralysis.”

Why bother exporting and sharing Smartlook insights?

Let’s be honest: GTM teams don’t need more data. They need the right data, in a format that’s easy to digest and act on. Smartlook’s session recordings, heatmaps, and event tracking are great—but they live in Smartlook. If you want your sales, marketing, or product partners to see the good stuff (not just raw numbers), you’ll need to pull insights out and get them in front of the right eyeballs.

Step 1: Decide what’s actually worth sharing

Before you start downloading charts or copying links, pause. Ask yourself:

  • What’s going to help my team make a decision, fix a problem, or spot an opportunity?
  • Is this just “interesting,” or is it actually actionable?
  • Who needs to see this—everyone, or just a few people?

Pro tip: Don’t flood Slack with every session recording. Focus on key moments: big drop-offs, confusing flows, high-value user actions, or anything tied to a KPI you care about.

Step 2: Get the insights out of Smartlook

Here’s what you can actually export or share from Smartlook—and what you can’t.

Session recordings

You can’t download session recordings directly as video files (unless you’re on an Enterprise plan and reach out to support). But you can share recording links.

  • How to share:
  • Find a session you want to share.
  • Click to open the session detail.
  • Hit the “Share” or “Copy link” button (the icon varies by version).
  • Send the link (via email, Slack, etc.).

Heads up:
- Recipients need Smartlook access. If they’re not users, you’ll hit a wall. - Links often expire or require login. For outside teams or execs, consider a quick screen recording (with Loom or similar).

Heatmaps

Heatmaps are visual gold, but you can’t export them as raw images with one click (as of mid-2024). Here’s what you can do:

  • Workaround:
  • Use the “Download” or “Export” button if available (usually on paid plans).
  • If not, take a screenshot (Cmd+Shift+4 on Mac, Snip tool on Windows).
  • Annotate with arrows or highlights if you want to draw attention to something specific.

Don’t overthink it:
- A marked-up screenshot beats a 10-slide deck every time.

Funnels and events

Funnels and event data are more straightforward.

  • Download data:
  • Go to your funnel or event dashboard.
  • Look for the “Export CSV” button (usually top-right).

  • Download and share via email, Google Sheets, or whatever your team uses.

  • Share links:

  • You can copy direct links to funnel views, but again, only Smartlook users can see them.

What to ignore:
- Don’t bother exporting raw event logs unless your team is deeply technical. Stick to summarized tables or key charts.

Step 3: Add context (this is non-negotiable)

Dumping a pile of data on your team is a quick way to get ignored. When you share something from Smartlook, always add a short explanation:

  • What are we looking at?
  • Why does it matter?
  • What should we do about it?

Example:

“Noticed a 40% drop-off between checkout steps 2 and 3 (see attached funnel CSV). Watching a few session replays, users seem confused by the shipping options. Worth reviewing?”

A little context goes a long way. You don’t need to write an essay—just enough for someone to get the point without hunting you down for answers.

Step 4: Pick the right sharing channel

Not all channels are equal. Here’s what usually works (and what doesn’t):

  • Slack/Teams:
  • Great for quick hits—links to sessions, annotated screenshots, rapid feedback.

  • Don’t spam general channels; use dedicated threads or groups.

  • Email:

  • Good for longer summaries, CSVs, or when people need to refer back later.

  • Docs/Notion/Confluence:

  • Best for recurring updates, dashboards, or when you want to track decisions over time.

  • Dashboards (if you must):

  • If your GTM team lives in a central BI tool (like Looker or Tableau), consider piping Smartlook data there. But unless you have an integration or an analyst who loves custom connectors, this can get complicated fast.

What to skip:
- Avoid sharing insights in meetings without visuals. No one remembers numbers rattled off live. - Don’t just dump CSVs in a shared drive and hope someone finds them.

Step 5: Build a lightweight workflow (so you actually keep doing this)

No one wants another reporting chore. Here’s how to make exporting and sharing Smartlook insights sustainable:

  • Pick a cadence:

  • Weekly or bi-weekly works for most teams. Don’t do daily unless you’re debugging something urgent.

  • Template it:

  • Use a simple format:
    • What we saw
    • What it means
    • What we’re doing

  • Bonus: save your screenshots in a shared folder for easy reference.

  • Nominate a “rotating curator”:

  • Sharing shouldn’t fall on one person forever. Rotate who’s responsible for pulling and sharing insights.

  • Get feedback:

  • If people stop responding, ask why. Maybe you’re sharing too much, or the format isn’t useful.

Pro tip:
If insights don’t lead to action or discussion within a week, you’re probably sharing the wrong stuff.

Step 6: Watch out for the common pitfalls

Let’s be real about what can go wrong:

  • Data silos:
  • Smartlook isn’t always integrated with your other tools. Copy-pasting is annoying, but sometimes necessary.
  • Access headaches:
  • Non-users can’t view links. Have a backup plan (screenshots, short videos).
  • Privacy:
  • Don’t share recordings that show sensitive info. Blur or redact if needed.
  • Over-analysis:
  • It’s easy to get sucked into watching sessions for hours. Set a timer or a limit.

Honesty time: What’s worth your effort

  • Do:
  • Share short, focused insights—especially things tied to conversion, friction, or new launches.
  • Use annotated visuals. People skim; visuals stick.

  • Keep feedback loops short.

  • Don’t:

  • Make this a reporting contest. More isn’t better.
  • Assume people will “just log into Smartlook and explore.” Most won’t.

Summary: Keep it simple, iterate often

Exporting and sharing Smartlook insights isn’t about showing off how much data you have—it’s about making it easier for your GTM team to spot and fix what matters. Focus on clarity, context, and action. Try a small workflow, see what sticks, and tweak as you go. Don’t chase perfection—just help your team see what’s really happening with your users, and make it easy for them to do something about it.