But what does it mean for us?

Scary smart consumers. This has been going on for awhile, and the Pew study predictions bear it out: in researching what they need, today's Internet-information-fueled young consumers are faster, smarter and completely immune to puffery and marketing-speak. One respondent wrote, "They will operate at a much quicker rate in terms of decision making, analysis and methodology than my generation."
Less focused buyers. The other side of the coin. Along with the good stuff, tomorrow's consumers will struggle with increasingly short attention spans, leaving them vulnerable to impulsive decisions. This could open doors for trusted advisors to help them cull through the informational static to make an informed decision.
Recognizing the upside of ADHD. With a growing plethora of information at their fingertips, 2020 consumers will "embrace ADHD as a tool" in cognitive ability, wrote William Schrader, a consultant who founded PSINet in the 1980s.
A need to slow down. Again, the opposite side of the embracing-ADHD coin. As instant connection and gratification become the norm, "long-form cognition and offline conemplative time will start to be viewed as valuable and will be re-integrated into social and work life in interesting and surprising ways," one respondent wrote.

Based on these reflections, perhaps the young insurance buyers of 2020 will want to gather all the facts and information they need online — but then will want to actually buy their insurance face to face from a real, live independent insurance agent operating out of a brick-and-mortar storefront — maybe even using paper forms.

Special Reports /

Toops Scoops: This is Your Brain on Tech

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