Omeda Transforms Email Delivery with Postmastery: A Complex Migration with Strategic Benefits

Omeda is an audience data and engagement platform that brings together customer data management, marketing automation, email, and subscription management. Unlike traditional ESPs, Omeda delivers a fully integrated solution that connects first-party audience data with marketing execution, enabling publishers to drive deeper engagement and monetization across channels. Their platform serves primarily B2B and Consumer publishers and media companies, with approximately 80% of their email addressing corporate domains. This creates unique challenges in email delivery and deliverability, especially with corporate mail systems, data centres, and security measures.

In late 2021, Omeda faced several critical challenges with their email infrastructure:

• Their custom-built MTA, developed internally in 2007 on Java and Tomcat, required modernisation
• The technical knowledge of the system was concentrated with limited personnel
• They needed to scale from 3 billion to 4+ billion emails per year
• The legacy system lacked modern capabilities for intelligent deferrals and delivery optimisation
• For their clients in media and publishing, email delivery speed is crucial for breaking news content

"For Omeda and our customers, email isn't just a communication channel-it's a core part of the value they deliver to their audiences and advertisers. Our clients sell against email opens and clicks to their advertisers, therefore deliverability is absolutely critical," explains Bettina Lippisch, VP Privacy & Data Governance, who led the migration project. "When our clients are deploying breaking news to 500,000 or a million people, and their competitors are doing the same thing, it's seconds and minutes that count to be first in the inbox."

Omeda engaged Postmastery to help migrate from their custom MTA to PowerMTA. Rather than attempting a standard lift-and-shift approach, Postmastery conducted a comprehensive gap analysis to understand Omeda's unique requirements and ensure a smooth transition.

The partnership included:

• Detailed Gap Analysis: Postmastery thoroughly documented Omeda's existing platform, components, workflows, and even data models to understand their complex system before planning the migration.
• Phased Implementation: Instead of a risky complete switchover, the migration was conducted in phases, starting with outbound mail before addressing inbound systems.
• Client-by-Client Migration: To minimise risk, Omeda migrated clients gradually over approximately a year, ensuring continuity of service.
• Custom Configuration: Postmastery helped implement innovative solutions, such as a system that dynamically generates PowerMTA configurations through HTTP endpoints, allowing for database-driven configuration similar to their original system.
• Postmastery Console Integration: After initially using two other leading platforms for deliverability monitoring, Omeda transitioned to the Postmastery Console, which provided better integration and more actionable insights.

We can create our own reports, review the behaviour of ISPs, and isolate incidents and investigate them separately. We can do all this using just one tool. At the same time, we monitor our IPs and our own domain names, and we receive alerts on a daily basis about issues that need our attention. And of course, your support team rocks! What else can a woman ask for?

One of the most tangible benefits of the migration to PowerMTA and implementation of the Postmastery Console was the substantial reduction in costs:

• Tool Consolidation: Omeda was able to replace two expensive deliverability tools with a single, more effective solution in the Postmastery Console.
• Personnel Efficiency: The streamlined system required fewer technical resources to maintain and support, allowing Omeda to reallocate staff to more strategic initiatives.
• Reduced Maintenance Overhead: Moving away from the custom-built MTA eliminated the need for specialised knowledge to maintain the legacy system, reducing dependency on specific personnel.
• Operational Efficiency: The improved visibility and proactive monitoring capabilities of the Postmastery Console reduced the time spent troubleshooting delivery issues, further enhancing team efficiency.

"It wasn't just a nice way for us to operationalise our deliverability easier but also to consolidate some costs, which of course is something we always like to see," notes Lippisch. The consolidation provided not only better functionality but also a more cost-effective approach to managing deliverability.

The migration and implementation of the Postmastery Console delivered significant benefits for Omeda:

• Improved Performance: Email delivery speed increased noticeably, crucial for clients sending breaking news content.
• Enhanced Deliverability: More intelligent handling of deferrals and delivery optimisations.
• Seamless Client Experience: "We focused on making the migration seamless from our clients’ perspective. The best feedback we got was when they started noticing faster delivery times without us prompting them," notes Lippisch.
• Tool Consolidation: Jean Kim, Email Deliverability Manager at Omeda, was particularly impressed by how Postmastery Console replaced multiple reporting tools while adding additional insights.
• Proactive Monitoring: The team can now identify and address potential issues before they impact delivery.
• Exceptional Stability: "Since the migration, we've seen consistently strong delivery performance. It's been one of the most stable periods we've had, which speaks to both the new infrastructure and the ongoing support from Postmastery," says Lippisch.

What made Postmastery stand out during this complex migration was their collaborative approach and deep expertise.
"Don't try to do this on your own," advises Lippisch. "The complexity of the setup and the intricacies that come with it - it's almost like a spaceship. You need a partner that has done it many times, seen many scenarios and issues, and truly understands deliverability."

For Jean Kim, the ongoing relationship with Postmastery's experts has proven invaluable. "Working post-transition, it was incredibly beneficial to have Postmastery experts available. In many ways, they operated like an extension to my team, giving me peace of mind and additional security," she explains. This partnership has allowed her to be more proactive about delivery and deliverability challenges.

The Postmastery team provided:

• Expert guidance on PowerMTA configuration and optimisation
• Responsive support through regular calls and Slack channels
• Knowledge transfer to Omeda's team, particularly their deliverability specialists
• Customised solutions that preserved Omeda's unique capabilities while leveraging PowerMTA's strengths

Omeda continues to rely on Postmastery Console as their primary deliverability platform and values the ongoing relationship with Postmastery. As new challenges emerge in the email landscape, such as more stringent regulations around cold emailing and AI-related developments, they anticipate Postmastery's expertise becoming even more valuable.

"Having Postmastery as a partner when new challenges hit - being able to ask, 'Are others seeing this? How are they handling it?'- that advisory role is incredibly valuable. Email is a critical part of how our clients engage their audiences and deliver value, so having trusted insight into deliverability is key," concludes Lippisch.