Cerkl
Cerkl is a Cincinnati-based internal communications SaaS platform that uses AI personalization to deliver multi-channel employee news digests across email, Teams, Slack, and SharePoint, serving SMBs, enterprise accounts like VMware, and the education vertical via tiered subscriptions.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersCincinnati, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Cerkl does
Cerkl is an internal communications and employee engagement platform headquartered in Blue Ash (Cincinnati), Ohio. The company builds software that enables organizations to publish personalized news and information to employees across multiple channels, including email, Microsoft Teams, Slack, SharePoint, mobile, and microsites. Its product portfolio centers on the flagship Broadcast internal communications suite, with modules such as Audience Manager, Email Builder, Templates, and Analytics. Lower-priced tiers include Foundations (a free-forever product introduced in 2026), Foundations+ (an email-focused paid plan), and a premium Omni AI tier that adds AI-driven personalization, subject line generation, and translation. The platform is built on Google Cloud Platform and integrates with HRIS systems including Workday, PeopleSoft, Active Directory, and Paycor, allowing automated segmentation and content distribution based on people data.
The company serves a mix of enterprise customers (notably VMware, which deployed Cerkl globally in 2020) and small-to-medium businesses, with additional expansion into the education vertical following a 2026 free-tier launch for that segment. Cerkl reports that its platform reaches approximately 5.5–6 million employees per month, a scale that supports an AI-driven personalization engine based on engagement data. The business model is a tiered SaaS subscription with a freemium entry point, a paid email-focused tier, and a premium AI-augmented tier — supplemented by marketplace distribution through Paycor and a 2018 Google Cloud Premier Partner relationship. Total disclosed funding is approximately $11.87M, including a $7M Series A led by River Bay Investments in October 2021, with no publicly disclosed subsequent round. Headcount sits in the 51–100 range, consistent with a mid-stage independent SaaS company.
Cerkl firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Cerkl
- Legal name
- Cerkl, Inc.
- Website
- https://cerkl.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- Cerkl is a Cincinnati-based internal communications SaaS platform that uses AI personalization to deliver multi-channel employee news digests across email, Teams, Slack, and SharePoint, serving SMBs, enterprise accounts like VMware, and the education vertical via tiered subscriptions.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Cerkl industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Internal Communications Software
- NAICS
- Computer Systems Design and Related Services (54151), Business Schools and Computer and Management Training (6114)
- SIC
- Services-Prepackaged Software (7372), Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Core LMS Platforms (Academic & Corporate) (EDAFAAAA)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Video Conferencing & Meetings (BPAMACAD)
Keywords
Where Cerkl is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Cincinnati
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Cerkl business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Operations
Revenue model
- SaaS Subscription (Foundations+ and Omni AI): Monthly subscription tiers for paid plans (Foundations+ and Omni AI) with features like unlimited email sends, priority/enterprise support, and additional instances. Billed monthly in advance with overages billed in arrears.
- Freemium (Foundations): Free-forever tier providing basic internal email communications with 5,000 monthly sends and 3 communicator seats. Serves as acquisition channel for paid upgrades to Foundations+ and Omni AI plans.
- Usage-based Overage Charges: Additional users at $75/month per user on Foundations plan; additional email sends at $0.09 per email beyond included 5,000 monthly sends; additional Instances at 5% fee each.
- Enterprise Custom Pricing: Omni AI tier pricing and billing governed by Order Form and MSA for enterprise customers, with separate enterprise-grade support and SLA terms.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Monthly | Free internal email platform for SMBs with core features |
| Subscription | Monthly | Paid email-focused plan for organizations needing more scale |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Enterprise omni-channel plan with AI personalization |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels7 records
Cerkl product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Cerkl Broadcast is a SaaS internal communications platform that enables organizations to build, personalize, and deliver employee communications across email, Microsoft Teams, Slack, SharePoint, mobile apps, and microsites from a single system. The platform uses machine learning and AI to personalize content for each employee based on interests and engagement behavior, and offers tiered plans including a free-forever Foundations tier, a paid Foundations+ tier, and an enterprise Omni AI tier with AI personalization and multi-channel delivery.
Product overview
Cerkl Broadcast is a unified internal communications platform with a tiered architecture comprising three main plans: Broadcast Foundations (free-forever entry tier), Broadcast Foundations+ (scaled email-focused tier), and Broadcast Omni AI (premium multi-channel tier with AI personalization). The platform operates across multiple channels including email, Microsoft Teams, Slack, SharePoint, and mobile app. Key modules include Audience Manager for employee data integration and targeting, Email Builder/Templates for content creation, Email/Omni-Channel Analytics for performance measurement, AI Newsletters for automatic content personalization, Content Blocks for reusable components, Campaign Tracking for initiative-level measurement, Retargeting for follow-up messaging, and Social Advocacy for employee social sharing. The platform uses machine learning to personalize content for each employee based on engagement behavior.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Broadcast: Cerkl's flagship internal communications platform that delivers personalized employee communications across email, intranet, Microsoft Teams, Slack, mobile, and other channels using machine learning and AI. Broadcast offers plans for companies that communicate primarily via email as well as companies with multiple channels for employee communication.
Products and services
- Cerkl Broadcast Flagship internal communications platform that uses machine learning and AI to personalize and deliver employee communications across email, intranet, Microsoft Teams, Slack, mobile, and other channels from a single system, with analytics and engagement measurement. Sold to organizations ranging from SMBs to Fortune 500 enterprises.
- Broadcast Foundations Free-forever internal communications tier for small and mid-sized businesses, offering drag-and-drop email building, precision audience targeting, actionable analytics, and branded templates with 5,000 monthly email sends and 3 communicator seats included at no cost.
- Broadcast Foundations+
- Broadcast Omni AI Premium omni-channel internal communications tier for enterprises, with AI-powered personalization, multi-channel distribution across email, Microsoft Teams, Slack, SharePoint, and mobile, content management, and enterprise-grade support and SLAs.
Quantifiable outcome
- 83% email open rates for manufacturing organizations using Broadcast news digests, the highest across reviewed industries
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Cerkl
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments7 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Cerkl technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration10 records
AI capability3 records
Feature9 records
Cerkl partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.
- Crescenzo CommunicationsminorPartnership giving all Broadcast customers a complimentary two-month membership to Strategy Studio, a private community for internal communicators offering live/on-demand educational events, peer-to-peer discussions, and roundtables with experienced practitioners.
- Google Cloud PlatformcorePremier partner status in the Google Cloud Platform Partner Program, recognizing Cerkl's technical expertise in building and operating secure, scalable applications on GCP. Provides access to advanced Google Cloud resources, technical support, and collaboration opportunities that accelerate product development and innovation.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Cerkl competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Poppulo: Enterprise internal communications and digital signage platform serving large global employers with multi-channel employee messaging and analytics. Directly comparable to Cerkl's Omni AI tier in target customer, feature set, and omni-channel delivery approach.
- ContactMonkey: Internal email creation, analytics, and list management tool that works inside Outlook and Gmail. Closely comparable to Cerkl's Foundations/Foundations+ tiers with strong overlap in SMB email-focused internal comms use cases.
- Firstup: Employee communications and experience platform (formerly SocialChorus) that delivers personalized content across email, mobile, push, and intranet channels. Comparable to Cerkl's enterprise offering with similar AI personalization and multi-channel ambitions.
- Simpplr: AI-powered employee experience and intranet platform serving mid-market and enterprise customers. Comparable to Cerkl's Omni AI in targeting enterprise buyers seeking unified employee communications and personalization.
- Workvivo: Employee experience and internal communications platform acquired by Zoom. Comparable to Cerkl in omni-channel employee engagement, social features, and enterprise customer base.
- Haiilo: Employee communications, advocacy, and engagement platform (formerly Smarp). Comparable to Cerkl in social advocacy features, multi-channel delivery, and enterprise internal communications focus.
- Beekeeper: Frontline employee communications and operations platform with a strong mobile-first offering. Comparable to Cerkl's mobile app and deskless-worker capabilities, particularly for non-desk employee reach.
- LumApps: Employee experience and intranet platform with deep Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace integrations. Comparable to Cerkl in SharePoint/Teams delivery and enterprise intranet consolidation.
- Sociabble: Employee communications, advocacy, and engagement platform with strong content curation and social sharing features. Comparable to Cerkl's Social Advocacy and content personalization capabilities.
Broad incumbents
- Microsoft Viva: Microsoft's employee experience platform bundled with Microsoft 365, encompassing engagement, learning, knowledge, and connections modules. Functions as a broad incumbent that competes with Cerkl's enterprise offering, particularly for customers heavily invested in the Microsoft ecosystem.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Cerkl social profiles
Digital presenceCerkl financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Cerkl leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
Cerkl funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds6 records
Investors2 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Cerkl M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Cerkl
What does Cerkl do?
Cerkl Broadcast is a SaaS internal communications platform that enables organizations to build, personalize, and deliver employee communications across email, Microsoft Teams, Slack, SharePoint, mobile apps, and microsites from a single system. The platform uses machine learning and AI to personalize content for each employee based on interests and engagement behavior, and offers tiered plans including a free-forever Foundations tier, a paid Foundations+ tier, and an enterprise Omni AI tier with AI personalization and multi-channel delivery.
Is Cerkl a public or private company?
Cerkl is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Cerkl founded?
Cerkl was founded in 2014. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Cerkl based?
Cerkl is headquartered in Cincinnati, United States, in the North America region.
How does Cerkl make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. SaaS Subscription (Foundations+ and Omni AI) is the primary driver. The others are freemium (Foundations), usage-based Overage Charges and enterprise Custom Pricing.
Who are Cerkl's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Poppulo, ContactMonkey, Firstup, Simpplr, Workvivo, Haiilo, Beekeeper, LumApps and Sociabble. Microsoft Viva is listed as a broad incumbent.
Does Cerkl have an API?
No public API is recorded for Cerkl.
What industry is Cerkl in?
Cerkl's product category is Internal Communications Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAFAAAA, Core LMS Platforms (Academic & Corporate), with a secondary code of BPAMACAD, Video Conferencing & Meetings. Its NAICS code is 54151 and its SIC code is 7372.