Case Study: How We Scaled Steminorder's Email Operations by 300% While Cutting Costs 80%

When a legacy platform starts showing cracks, the temptation is to patch things up and hope for the best. But sometimes the smartest move is a complete infrastructure overhaul. This is the story of how we transformed Steminorder from a struggling communication platform into a high-performance operation—tripling their email capacity while slashing server costs by 80%.

The Client: Pioneering Global Shipping Since 1999

Steminorder isn't just another shipping platform. Founded by Çetin Şaşmazer in 1999, it was the world's first global shipping platform—connecting vessel owners, cargo shippers, crew, and maritime professionals long before "platform economy" became a buzzword.

The name itself comes from shipping terminology, where "stem in order" indicates a smooth, win-win business deal. For over two decades, Steminorder has lived up to that promise, helping maritime professionals find vessels, cargos, crew, and contacts through systematic, data-driven processes.

But by 2024, their technology infrastructure was holding them back from delivering on that promise.

The Breaking Point: When Your Platform Can't Keep Up

When Steminorder approached Alen Studios, they were facing critical operational bottlenecks that threatened their core business:

• The Email Crisis: The platform was sending 30,000 emails daily—a vital communication channel for their maritime network. But each batch took 2 hours to send. No tracking. No analytics. No visibility into deliverability, opens, or clicks. They were essentially flying blind while their users waited.
• Hidden Bugs Silencing Their Reach: A critical bug prevented emails from reaching a large proportion of registered users. They were losing communication with their own community without even knowing it. Monthly email volume was stuck at 200,000 emails—not because of lack of demand, but because the system simply couldn't handle more.
• Infrastructure Bleeding Money: Their AWS Windows IIS server environment was expensive and inefficient. Costs were high, performance was mediocre, and scaling was a nightmare.
• Database Vulnerability: Their database lived in an AWS Windows environment with no proper backup strategy. One disaster away from catastrophic data loss.
• Missing Revenue Infrastructure: Despite having a user base ready to pay for premium features, they had no subscription plans, no payment gateway, and no way to manage billing or refunds.

Our Approach: Strategic Infrastructure Transformation

Rather than applying band-aids, we took a comprehensive approach—addressing immediate pain points while building a foundation for long-term growth.

Phase 1: Fixing the Email Bottleneck

• Reduced send time from 2 hours to 25 minutes: Parallelized email processing cut sending time by 87.5%
• Real-time tracking: Integrated webhook listeners that immediately update the database when emails are opened, bounced, delivered, marked as spam, or clicked
• Built-in analytics: Gave the team detailed visibility into campaign performance for the first time
• Email verification: Integrated Verifalia for automatic validation of user-submitted email lists, protecting sender reputation

Phase 2: Architecture Modernization

• From Windows IIS to Linux Microservices: Dockerized the application, enabling true scalability and dramatically reducing server overhead
• Database Migration & Security: Moved from AWS Windows environment to AWS RDS MySQL with automated daily backups and proper isolation
• Cost Optimization: The infrastructure overhaul reduced server costs by approximately 80%—freeing up budget for growth initiatives

Phase 3: Building Revenue Infrastructure

• Built subscription plan architecture
• Integrated secure payment gateway
• Created comprehensive admin panel for subscription management, payment processing, and refund handling
• Enabled users to manage their own email lists and campaigns through a new circulation platform

Phase 4: Bug Fixes & User Experience

Throughout the project, we systematically identified and resolved bugs that were degrading the user experience. This wasn't glamorous work, but it was essential—every fixed bug meant happier users and better retention.

The Technology Stack

• Backend: .NET for robust, scalable server-side processing
• Frontend: Vue.js and React for responsive, modern interfaces
• Database: AWS RDS MySQL with automated backups
• Infrastructure: AWS Linux with Docker containerization
• Email Processing: Custom queue-based worker system
• Email Verification: Verifalia integration

The Results: From Bottleneck to Breakthrough

• 300% Increase in Email Capacity: Monthly email volume jumped from 200,000 to 600,000—not through pushing the system harder, but by fixing what was broken and building it right.
• 87.5% Faster Processing: Email send times dropped from 2 hours to 25 minutes, enabling more frequent, timely communications with their maritime network.
• 80% Cost Reduction: Infrastructure costs plummeted while performance improved—proof that modern architecture pays for itself.
• Complete Visibility: Real-time tracking and analytics replaced the previous black box, giving the team data-driven insights into every campaign.
• New Revenue Streams: The subscription and payment infrastructure opened doors for monetization strategies that weren't possible before.
• Zero Data Loss Risk: Proper database backup and isolation eliminated the existential threat of catastrophic data loss.

Lessons from the Trenches

• Legacy Systems Hide Invisible Losses: That email bug wasn't just a technical issue—it was silently costing them user engagement and revenue. Sometimes you don't know what you're losing until you measure it.
• Infrastructure Debt Compounds: Delaying modernization doesn't save money; it bleeds it. The 80% cost reduction wasn't magic—it was the result of using appropriate technology for the job.
• Speed Matters in Operations: Reducing email send time from 2 hours to 25 minutes didn't just improve efficiency—it changed what was possible. Faster operations enable faster iteration.
• Data Visibility Drives Better Decisions: Once Steminorder could see email performance metrics, they could optimize campaigns, improve targeting, and serve their users better.

Why This Project Matters

Steminorder's story isn't unique. Many successful companies find themselves outgrowing their original infrastructure. The technology that got you to your first thousand users often can't take you to your next hundred thousand.

The difference between companies that scale and companies that stagnate often comes down to willingness to invest in infrastructure before it completely breaks.

Steminorder made the right call. They recognized the warning signs and acted decisively. Now they have a platform that can grow with their ambitions.

Your Infrastructure Holding You Back?

• Critical operations taking hours that should take minutes
• Missing data and analytics that would inform better decisions
• Infrastructure costs growing faster than your user base
• Bugs affecting user experience but no time to fix them systematically
• Revenue opportunities you can't pursue because the technology isn't there

At Alen Studios, we specialize in transforming legacy systems into modern, scalable platforms—without disrupting your operations or starting from scratch.

Ready to scale your platform the right way? Schedule a free technical assessment and let's discuss how we can optimize your infrastructure for growth.

Steminorder continues to connect the global maritime industry with systematic, innovative solutions. Learn more at steminorder.com