03.09.2008
MailPerformance becomes an official partner of the Return Path Sender Score accreditation programme

MailPerformance now offers its clients the most recognised accreditation programme in the world for email senders: Sender Score Certified

In 2007, 19% of commercial emails were blocked by ISPs and webmails (source, Return Path). Given this information, MailPerformance, one of Europe’s leading providers of ASP email and SMS routing solutions, made the decision to expand its range of services and tools aimed at improving deliverability rates.

This was achieved by partnering with Return Path to offer our clients the email accreditation programme, Sender Score Certified. This programme, called a white list, is based on electronic authentication protocols but also on maintaining the good reputation of IP addresses that send email. As a result, the programme’s ISP partners consider emails sent from IP addresses authenticated by Sender Score Certified to be legitimate and safe to deliver.

This partnership marks a genuine recognition of best practices by MailPerformance in terms of deliverability and the fight against spam, as Return Path carried out a full inspection of its technical infrastructure.In compliance with the rules laid down by the Sender Score Certified programme, the MailPerformance teams assist clients through the certification step by step. Clients submit an application describing in detail their business practices (collection and volume of email addresses, frequency and size of mailings, etc.). This application allows the Return Path teams to carry out a thorough audit of sending practices. If the client meets the requirements of the programme then the IP addresses and the client’s domain names are included on the Sender Score Certified white list.

From this point, when an email is sent, the ISP or recipient domain checks if the IP address is listed in the Sender Score Certified white list. If it is listed, then the email will be given positive treatment as part of the ISP’s delivery decision process. Furthermore, for Hotmail and MSN, the images or hypertext links included in the body of the text are no longer systematically blocked by default, which for member clients will have a positive impact on the performance and return on investment of their email campaigns.

Once the client has been accepted into the programme, the reputation of their sending IP addresses will be closely monitored. Likewise, senders will be penalised if they do not comply with certain indicators (complaint rates, bounces, reputation of IP addresses, etc.). MailPerformance, itself a sender, has ways of measuring and monitoring these indicators.

"By integrating the Sender Score Certified programme, we are more than ever a trusted partner of ISPs" says Jérôme Laplace, Associate Director of MailPerformance. "We have chosen the best programme to offer our clients, which will enable them to optimise the deliverability rates of their email campaigns." Didier Colombani, Director of Commercial Development and Partnerships for Return Path in Europe, comments:"We are delighted to welcome MailPerformance to the Sender Score Certified partner programme. MailPerformance’s membership in this programme, which is chosen overwhelmingly by the main ISPs and operators in the world, further reinforces our partnership in Europe and resolutely shows the willingness of MailPerformance to support its clients in optimising the distribution of their messages and the adoption of best practices in email marketing. "

About Sender Score

Sender Score, Return Path’s Delivery Assurance Solutions division, helps mailers get more email delivered to the inbox by giving them the tools and insight to monitor and diagnose deliverability failures, build better email reputations, and minimize or prevent future blocking, filtering, and rendering problems.

Sender Score works with both the sending and receiving communities to bring more transparent standards to email delivery and filtering. Return Path’s delivery assurance solutions include Sender Score Monitor, Sender Score Manager, and the Internet’s most widely used whitelist, Sender Score Certified.

>> Access to "Sender Score" section

About Return Path

Founded in 1999, Return Path helps mailers get more email delivered to the inbox. Our tools and services give commercial senders the tools and insight to monitor and diagnose deliverability failures, build better email reputations, and minimize or prevent future blocking, and rendering problems.

Return Path works with both the sending and receiving communities to bring transparent standards to email delivery and filtering. Return Path runs the internet’s most widely used whitelist, Sender Score Certified.

>> Access to "Return Path" website