There are no hard and fast rules for successful bulk email marketing, but there are some basic principles you should follow to maximize your chances for success:

Have list in place. Before you work with a bulk email vendor, you need to acquire a quality list. If you work with a mailing list broker, make sure they only offer opt-in or double-opt in lists — those that include only people who have agreed to allow marketers to contact them. If you compile your list in-house, make sure a vendor can help segment the list to target different demographics and interests.

Test, test, test. Before you begin any wide-scale bulk email campaign, test all links to make sure they go to the appropriate pages on your web site. It's helpful to ask someone not associated with your mailing to review the content. Furthermore, split your campaign to test different subject lines or offers that will allow you to learn and optimize your results with each ensuing campaign.

Who are you again? Clearly displaying your company name can help improve open rates and remind the recipient that they requested your information. Make sure the "From" and "Subject" fields are specific and the name of your business appears in the domain. If possible, include your company name in the subject line along with a compelling "hook" such as, "limited time offer" or "20% off clearance merchandise."

Be direct. Get to the point immediately. People may go through hundreds of emails a day and don't have time to read a lot of text. They need the most important data up front: what the offer is, why do they want it, and how they can get it. Keep secondary information, such as general marketing copy, at the bottom of the email.

Provide options. Always give your bulk email recipients the option of receiving an HTML or text version of the message. If they have a low-speed connection, they will likely want text because it loads quicker.

Sow the seeds. An effective way to check the delivery and appearance of your bulk emails is to seed the list with your personal email or the emails of friends and colleagues.

Keep offers fresh: If you continually send the same old content to your customers, they'll start to opt out in droves. General content — articles, helpful tips, even surveys — can keep subscribers interested if you don't have new offers or promotions to entice them. Just make sure it's relevant to your audience.

Don't try to do too much. Graphics should be small and few in number, since large graphics increase file size and can trigger spam filters. And you should avoid adding video and audio files, as some customers may have trouble viewing them. Also, don't risk annoying customers with too many bulk emails in a given month.