Millennials spend $200 billion yearly, and that number is going to grow as they gain experience, age into upper management and have more disposable income. We get it—that’s a big old pie, and everyone wants a slice. But in the ardor to court this group of people, to effectively study and break down their psychographics and demographics and communication patterns and purchase behaviors, the same characteristics and personality traits are also heaped onto their consumer profile, turning an extraordinarily textured and diverse group into a selfie-obsessed, superficial hive mind.

Here is the one real truth about Millennials: our generation has been shaped by technology in a way that no other generation has. The oldest of our group may remember the days when you had to unplug your telephone from your land line to use dial-up internet, but the youngest of us grew up with an entire world of information at her fingertips. It’s a dynamic that has affected every aspect of the way we search for and process information.

For one thing, there is a much greater transparency in the marketplace. We know a lot about the companies that peddle their wares to us, and this has resulted in much less trust in traditional modes of advertising. We now rely heavily on the endorsements of our friends and family, and we search out information about pricing, performance, and other customers’ experiences before making purchases—and we often do it in the store as we’re shopping. Older people may see us as oblivious, glued to our phone’s in public—we’re really getting the information we need to make smart purchase decisions.

Another thing—we are able and eager to consume a lot of media. The average Millennial follows 9.5 topics of information, and interacts with the world via multiple devices. (Older generations might be surprised to discover that, as a group, our interest in news about politics, science, technology, and health and fitness outweighs our interest in pop culture, style, beauty, and fashion. But, as voracious consumers of information, we take in a little bit of everything. We’re information omnivores.) We are constantly exposed to/bombarded with the ads and branded content that comes along with that media.We are savvy. We are also skeptical. And we are definitely bored with messages that aren’t timely or don’t relate to our interests, values, and lifestyles—whatever those might be.