Sydney Opera House seeks email deliverability platform to protect $5.6 million annual revenue

Sydney Opera House has issued a tender for an email deliverability platform to safeguard millions of dollars of annual email-driven revenue and to improve inbox placement rates for its subscribers.

A comprehensive Software as a Service solution that integrates with the venue's current Email Service Platform and other popular ESPs is sought, with advanced analytics, deliverability monitoring and remediation tools through a unified dashboard provided.

The procurement documentation notes that deliverability fluctuations put $5.6 million in annual email-driven revenue at risk.

The tender states that the purpose of the project is to ensure the good health of the Sydney Opera House Trust's email programme and to ensure that messages to the organisation's 800,000-plus subscribers reach intended recipients' inboxes rather than spam folders.

The venue expects the solution to prevent an estimated three to eight major deliverability incidents annually through comprehensive analytics and predictive issue detection.

Mandatory technical specifications include integration with Active Campaign and other major Email Service Platforms, IP certification and whitelisting capabilities, and active block list monitoring.

The platform must integrate with Universal Feedback Loop, Google Postmaster Tools, Signal Spam and Microsoft Smart Network Data Services whitelisting systems.

Additionally, vendors must support minimum 99.9 per cent uptime and assist with potential Email Service Platform migration and IP warm-ups.

ESP migration involves switching from one email service provider to another, typically requiring the transfer of subscriber lists, email templates and automated workflows.

IP warm-ups are necessary when using new sending addresses, as internet service providers treat new internet protocol addresses with suspicion until they establish a positive sending reputation through gradually increased email volumes over several weeks.

Beyond basic functionality, the tender specifies comprehensive audit and reporting requirements.

These include sender reputation analysis, inbox placement reviews, IP and domain reputation monitoring, and complaint rate analysis by provider.

Proactive monitoring and sender reputation management will prevent blacklisting incidents that typically cause three to five weeks of email channel disruption.

The initial contract term spans one year, with potential extensions for two consecutive one-year periods at Sydney Opera House Trust's discretion.

Intended contract commencement date is 14 July.

Closing date for the tender is 20 June, 3 pm.

This procurement forms part of Sydney Opera House's broader digital infrastructure modernisation.

The venue welcomes 10.9 million visitors annually and hosts almost 1800 performances attended by 1.5 million people.