Cerkl

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.

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

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

• Internal communications platform
• Employee email software
• Omni-channel employee engagement
• AI-powered newsletters
• Workforce communications SaaS

Headquarters

HQ city

Cincinnati

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Operations

Revenue model

1. 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.
2. 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.
3. 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.
4. 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

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core 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

Named customers2 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration10 records

AI capability3 records

Feature9 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Crescenzo CommunicationsminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 January 2026Partnership 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 PlatformcoreTechnology or Integration · 9 January 2018Premier 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

Direct 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

• Xx.com/Cerkl
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@cerkl3334
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cerkl
• Facebookfacebook.com/cerkl

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds6 records

Investors2 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Cerkl