Build it. The systems mode of Sheppard's practice.
Every paid click becomes a booked job.
We build the customer-journey systems underneath your marketing. AI call answering, booking automation, CRM and dispatch integration (ServiceTitan, FieldEdge, Housecall Pro), attribution warehouses that tie ROAS to booked revenue, applied AI workflows. Owned by your operation. Transferable at exit.
Operating Thesis
The marketing engine is software now.
Five years ago the marketing P&L was paid media and a few agencies. Today the function lives in AI voice agents, attribution warehouses, dispatch integrations, lead-scoring models, and the operational tooling that ties it all back to booked revenue. The operator that owns its software compounds faster than the operator that rents it.
We build that software inside your operation. We don't sell it as a SaaS. You own it. The next buyer pays for it on exit.
01
AI Call Answering & Booking
Every paid click becomes a booked job.
The largest leak in residential home services marketing is the call that doesn't get answered or doesn't get booked. We wire AI voice answering, live-agent overflow, and CRM-integrated booking into the marketing operating system so spend converts to revenue, not abandoned calls.
AI Call Answering & Booking
What We Ship
- 24/7 AI voice answering with natural-language intake and qualification
- Live-agent overflow for emergency, high-ticket, or complex calls
- Direct booking into the dispatch system (ServiceTitan, FieldEdge, Housecall Pro, Service Fusion)
- Call recording, transcription, and sentiment analysis for QA and coaching
- Speed-to-answer monitoring as a marketing KPI (booked-call rate by hour)
- Missed-call recovery flows via SMS and outbound callback
Stack
AI voice agents (Synthflow / Bland / Vapi class) · twilio · ServiceTitan / FieldEdge / Housecall Pro APIs · CallRail or equivalent · SMS recovery · Postgres event log
Recent Build · End-to-end call infrastructure
We rebuild the call layer so booked-call rate becomes the operating metric the CFO reads, not impressions or clicks. The infrastructure sits between ad spend and dispatch and quietly compounds revenue per paid dollar.
02
Lead Operations Infrastructure
The unified lead pipeline most operations don't have.
The lead-ops layer connecting marketing channels, CRM, dialer, and dispatch into one auditable pipeline. CFO-grade. Sponsor-grade. Built so the next owner inherits a working system, not a vendor relationship.
Lead Operations Infrastructure
What We Ship
- Unified lead taxonomy across channels and locations (source, type, disposition, channel, DMA)
- Salesforce / HubSpot / ServiceTitan / LeadSquared sync layer
- Sync-health monitoring with failure alerts and replay tooling
- Audit trail and reconciliation against the financial system
- CFO-readable dashboard with monthly EBITDA-contribution view
- Multi-location platform view for operators running roll-ups
Stack
Next.js · Supabase · Postgres · Salesforce / HubSpot APIs · cron-based sync workers · Vercel
Recent Build · Multi-DMA home services platform
Salesforce-synced lead operations dashboard with parallel cron-based sync, audit-grade failure tracking, auth revocation, and an admin sync-health UI. SQL aggregation tuned for sponsor-facing reporting cadence.
03
Attribution & Reporting Warehouses
Spend reconciled to booked revenue.
The data layer that ties every marketing dollar back to the financial system. Multi-touch attribution with audit trail. ROAS measured against actual booked-revenue, not platform-reported conversions. Reporting your CFO can sign off on.
Attribution & Reporting Warehouses
What We Ship
- Multi-touch attribution methodology reconciled to the financial system
- ROAS calculated against booked revenue (not platform-reported conversions)
- Server-side tagging, consent management, and Conversions API integration
- Channel-mix dashboards normalized for trade economics and seasonality
- CAC and LTV models by channel, DMA, and trade
- Sponsor-facing monthly EBITDA-contribution reporting on the close cadence
Stack
Postgres · dbt-style transforms · GA4 / server-side tagging · CallRail / dynamic number insertion · Meta Conversions API · custom warehouse layer
Recent Build · Attribution warehouse for multi-DMA platform
Replaced a default GA4-only attribution stack with a custom warehouse reconciling paid spend, call tracking, CRM dispositions, and dispatched revenue. Sourced-revenue numbers reconciled to the GL for the first time in the platform's history.
04
Applied AI Workflows
AI where it moves a KPI, not where it demos well.
The AI tooling woven into the marketing operating system. Lead scoring, predictive LTV, content generation pipelines, creative iteration, dispatch-side coaching, and the next layer of AI that's actually moving operators' numbers. Not generic AI for AI's sake.
Applied AI Workflows
What We Ship
- Lead scoring and predictive booked-call probability
- Predictive LTV by acquisition channel for budget allocation
- AI-assisted content production for local pages, GBP, and ad creative at DMA scale
- Creative iteration loops for paid social and paid search ad copy
- Dispatch-side call review and tech coaching from recorded interactions
- Evaluation harnesses so every AI workflow gets measured, not assumed to work
Stack
Claude / OpenAI APIs · LangChain / custom orchestration · vector store for content reuse · evaluation harnesses · human-in-the-loop review
Recent Build · AI scoring + content automation
Built into operating partners' marketing stacks where the AI workflow is measured against a KPI (cost per booked call, content production throughput) rather than installed as a category and assumed to add value.
Who We Build For
Built with operators. Owned by operators.
Operator Engagements
Independent home services operators
HVAC, plumbing, electrical, roofing operators doing real volume who need the call layer, the booking layer, and the reporting layer wired together.
Multi-location operators and roll-ups
Multi-DMA operators consolidating lead operations and attribution into one platform-grade system.
Builds scoped to the operation's existing stack rather than imposed as a SaaS vendor's seat license.
PE Sponsor Engagements
Lower-middle-market PE sponsors
Diligence, value-creation, and infrastructure builds across portfolio companies.
Growth-equity operating partners
Cross-portfolio marketing oversight, attribution standardization, and AI workflow rollout.
Engaged at the platform level. Production infrastructure built inside each portco's perimeter, owned by the operator, transferable at exit.
Frequently Asked
On the systems we build.
What does Sheppard build for PE-backed home services portcos?
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Do you sell software as a SaaS?
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What's the typical timeline for a Sheppard build engagement?
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What tech stack does Sheppard build on?
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Does the portco own what Sheppard builds?
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Build it. One of three modes.
Have a system that needs to be built?
Call answering and booking infrastructure, lead-ops platform, attribution warehouse, or AI workflow. Most builds ship inside 90 days.