Overstock.com experienced a 19% boost in clickthrough rates for e-mail using Goodmail’s CertifiedEmail system compared to a control group of messages that were not certified, according to a study Goodmail released Wednesday.
The test also resulted in a 22% boost in revenue per e-mail for certified messages, according to Goodmail.
Goodmail was the center of a firestorm for much of this year after AOL announced it would begin implementing the previously unknown company’s CertifiedEmail system and would begin charging marketers a fraction of a penny per e-mail to guarantee them delivered to AOL users with graphics and links intact.
The criticism came mainly from nonprofits and civil liberties groups who contended that the scheme would result in two-tiered e-mail service — a higher level for those who could afford to pay.
Marketers, however, took a wait-and-see philosophy, figuring that if the service provided a lift in revenue that was higher than its cost, it would be worth buying. Goodmail has yet to announce a price for its service, however.
“The increase in sales generated per e-mail makes the ROI of CertifiedEmail compelling,” said Geoff Atkinson, director of e-mail and Web site marketing for Overstock.com, in a statement. “Authenticated CertifiedEmail messages also provide security benefits for our customers.”
Wednesday’s announcement follows a similar one Goodmail made last month in which it claimed Goodmail certified e-mails sent on behalf of Time Inc. achieved a 30% lift in click.
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