According to The Free Dictionary online the definition of success is as follows:1. the achievement of something attempted. 2. the attainment of wealth, fame, or position. 3. a person or thing that is successful.In order to achieve any of the above criteria marketing to the new Web 2.0 or in the social media arena as we know it today you, first of all, have to know your target audience and what makes them tick.

What drives them to spend so much time in the social media environment? What are they hoping to gain from these activities? What are their needs and wants? And most importantly; how do they feel about being targeted as a potential consumer in this situation? To achieve any level of success with the social media market each of these areas must be addressed in detail.

First of all, why do people spend so much of their free time on MySpace or Facebook? What is the lure or attraction of these social media sites? On some of the forums, such as MySun, people go so far as to say it's an addiction. One female contributor is quoted as saying, "I was addicted to MySpace. I wanted to sit there 24/7. I've deleted it now, can't be doing with it anymore, as for face book well I'm on there now but I think I'm gonna delete that too. It's nuts."

Another 26 year old female said, "I love Facebook, my sister got me hooked on it. Before then I didn't see the fuss, but now I do. The more you do on it, the more you love it." And yet another participant, a 34 year old male stated, "I use MySpace to keep in touch with everyone, not addicted though. Pop in once and awhile, and it's helpful. Found friends from years ago."

From each of those comments you see a common thread emerging. Two of the respondents mentioned "addiction" and one used the phrase "hooked on it". All of these people constitute a potential target market, for Internet Marketers, no matter what their reasons for spending so much time socializing online. So it follows that in order to be successful marketing to this audience, the marketer too, must spend time online socializing with and gaining the trust of these potential clients.

In order to accomplish this you have to be transparent with these individuals. Whatever you do don't try to deceive them by pretending to be someone you're not just to gain favor with them. These people are there to make friends and establish relationships and that has to be the goal of the Internet Marketer as well. You have to respect their environment and their reasons for being there. If not you're doomed to failure even before you begin.

Secondly what are their needs and wants? In order to determine this, the Internet Marketer must again establish relationships with these people in order to find out what their situation is and what they are looking for at the present time and in the future. If they aren't looking for what you're selling then at least you've made a friend online and maybe the next person will be in the market for your product or service.

Finally how do they feel about being targeted by Internet Marketers in their environment? Again in this situation the Internet Marketer must always keep in mind that these people are in what they consider to be their space, pardon the pun. You must respect their feelings and approach them as if you're in their home. The Internet Marketer can be viewed as an outsider or an intruder if they're too aggressive and lose sight of the fact that they are on their turf, so to speak.

Finally, along with being genuine in your approach, have fun with it. That's what these sites are meant to be for the most part and if you're having fun and being honest about your intentions then you can be very successful marketing to the social media audience online.