How we turned an agency's spreadsheets into one platform

Spreadsheets are flexible, but lack structure and can be time consuming to work with.

Specialists filled in each client sheet by hand during onboarding and kept it up to date for the length of the retainer. The strategy behind the work was spread across briefs, emails, meeting notes, and the sheet itself, so it was never in one place and never quite in sync.

On top of that, specialists logged into a different tool for every task, campaign data relied on a third-party connector, and pulling live numbers together for weekly and monthly reports was slow and manual.

Every new client meant more of the same manual work.

One platform, built around the specialist and the client.

We built Trickle OS as a web application on Next.js and PostgreSQL, with direct API connections to the ad platforms Trickle uses. It's built around two people: the specialist running the work internally and the client following it from the outside.

Instead of relying on a third-party connector, we connected directly to Google Ads, Meta, and TikTok and sync campaign data straight into the database.

The whole stack is open source and portable, so Trickle owns its data and can move hosting whenever it wants.

The plan, the work, and the data in one place.

• A platform for specialists and clientsSpecialists manage their data in a more structured way, and the client gets full visibility into the work being done, improving communication and transparency.
• Ad platform integrationThe system fetches campaigns and metrics right from the ad platforms, such as Google Ads, LinkedIn, and Meta.
• AI as a tool for specialistsSpecialists often manage large amounts of data. With AI and LLMs, Trickle OS now allows specialists to work more efficiently, while still being in full control of every decision.

Less manual work, easier reporting, and full ownership of the data.

Trickle OS replaced the spreadsheet stack with one system the whole agency works in. The plan, the work, and the data now live in the same place, reporting no longer means chasing numbers across tools, and clients can follow the work as it happens.