When Hakkoda hired Sterling Communications, the data consultancy was still working through exactly how it wanted to position itself in a fast-growing industry. We began by working with Hakkoda’s marketing team to craft the proper messaging for public relations.
Hakkoda didn’t want to be pigeonholed as “just” a Snowflake healthcare consultant, so Sterling collaborated with executives to craft the messaging of a “modern data consultancy for highly regulated industries.” This opened the door to develop deep domain expertise across healthcare, financial services, public sector, and supply chain for multiple cloud platforms.
Sterling was then able to turbocharge the company’s visibility with clear and credible differentiation in a crowded cloud market.
Sterling focused on surfacing Hakkoda’s vertical specialists — experienced operators with a point of view on how to modernize data strategy with Snowflake. We turned the company’s “State of Data” research from a single asset into a multi-wave campaign across industries. Our team targeted specific news organizations with original bylines, timely media outreach, and strategic commentary around AI, regulation, and modernization.
Within a year, Sterling helped Hakkoda garner more than 100 meaningful media mentions and nearly a dozen published bylines, many of them focused on artificial intelligence. Hakkoda’s leaders became regular voices in a variety of vertical outlets such as MedCity News, American Banker, and SupplyChainBrain. In 2025, the company earned a CIO 100 Award and was named an IDC Innovator for AI Professional Services.
The messaging, positioning, and public relations all worked. In 2025, IBM acquired Hakkoda. The press coverage cited Hakkoda’s vertical focus, thought leadership, and premium Snowflake partnership as key differentiators. Today, Hakkoda commands nearly 40% share of voice among its peers. Not bad for a startup founded in 2021.