Say hello to the millennial Generation: millennials love to spend money and use mobile banking. But winning their loyalty is not easy. Here are a few suggestions for successfully marketing to this group, also known as Generation Y.

• Author: Bleedorn, Gina

THE MILLENNIALS. 1 hey are Generation Y; echo-boomers, children of baby boomers; Generation We, Generation Next and the Net Generation; the trophy kids who win just by participation; the Peter Pan Generation who still live with their "helicopter" hovering parents. They are our emerging workforce; the 20-somethings, mommy bloggers, and first generation to come into their own with cell phones and Facebook. They were raised to believe they could be or do anything ... and now, armed with more technology than ever before, they are defining the new societal norm.

This group of 80 million (almost 30 percent of the U.S. population) and $200 billion in purchasing power has attracted, intrigued and even hypnotized the business marketer. They already outnumber Gen X two to one. By 2015 their spending will hit $2.5 trillion, and by 2018 their income is forecasted to eclipse $3.4 trillion globally, surpassing the boomers. Yet marketing efforts targeted at them, especially in the financial industry, continue to fail. Why? Because this uber-connected, casually dressed, digitally obsessed generation has all the world's data at their fingertips. They see everything and can see through everything. The way to start marketing to them is to stop.

So what's their deal?

Technological advances dizzy their 20- to 30-year millennial lifespans. They've seen cassettes tapes go to CDs, to MP3s, to digital streaming; they've seen video go from VHS to DVD to BlueRay to OnDemand to Hulu, and other websites that offer streaming entertainment. One in five has never subscribed to cable TV, and another 30 percent consider cancelling their subscription. They intuitively adopt digital technologies and rapidly adapt to change within them.

They have a strong sense of security and idealism. They respect authority but are not afraid to question it. They prefer convention over individualism--they want to fit in and be a part of a larger societal whole. Their values are surprisingly traditional. They want to do meaningful work and they crave community. They love to spend money (even in the recession, their spending habits have maintained) and don't think long-term. They live in the now.

Even with epically ballooned post-collegiate debt, a volatile job market and an off-stepped pace rise in median income, they remain the most optimistic generation to ever walk the planet. And collectively, they possess the highest level of education in history.

How they bank

Banks: You and the...