From Invisible to Intriguing
Not long ago, working in the data center industry was something of a conversation killer. At social gatherings, if you mentioned you worked in a data center, you’d get a polite nod and then watch the person slowly drift away toward someone with a more “interesting” job. Fast forward to today, and the dynamic has completely changed. Suddenly, with the onset of AI, data centers are in the spotlight. People want to know how they work, why they matter, and what’s behind the “cloud” that powers their lives.
But with this attention comes a flood of questions—and, unfortunately, a wave of misconceptions as well. Headlines about energy consumption, water usage, and environmental impact often paint an incomplete or somewhat inaccurate picture. As marketers, we now find ourselves at the center of this conversation. Our role is no longer in the background; it’s critical to a data center’s success. This article explores how marketing in the data center industry differs from that in other sectors, and why it is more important now than ever.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Steve Lim has over 25 years of experience in leading marketing teams to drive significant revenue growth and enhance enterprise value through creative, impactful marketing programs. He has a proven track record in building corporate brands, shaping customer experiences, and developing innovative go-to-market solutions.
Before joining NTT Global Data Centers, Lim was Customer Marketing Leader at LinkedIn and served as Vice President / Head of Marketing at Vantage Data Centers, where he was instrumental in increasing the company’s valuation fivefold. Prior to that, Lim also held management roles at Equinix, McAfee, and Cisco.
