Generation Z, those born in and after 1995, will never know a life without computers, tablets, nor cellphones. They're 23 million and growing strong. Pew Research Center surveyed teens ages 13 to 17 and found the following.

One of the easiest traps to fall into when thinking about teens is to think back to your own teen years for guidance or inspiration. Those halcyon days of yesteryear may be wonderful to reflect on and reminisce about with friends but, trust me, they aren't going to help you understand the current crop of teens. Why? Because the teen experience changes all the time.

Not so long ago, when a teen decided he needed a new pair of sneakers, the first step in his process would be to plan a trip to the mall. Today, teens' path to purchase for nearly any product, from buying shoes to picking a restaurant, is increasingly diverging from traditional retail processes. Technology has had an obvious impact on young people's shopping habits, but so have key shifts in consumer mindset.

When Snapchat, the messaging app popular with teens and millennials, recently announced that it was monetizing its geo-filter digital stickers, a global brand was the first to sign on: McDonald's restaurants. Customers who visit any of the fast food chain's U.S. locations can now add digital stickers to their Snapchat posts with cheeseburgers, fries and other brand-specific illustrations.

Eight hundred billion dollars in global consumer buying influence. Two hundred billion in the U.S. You wouldn't expect those figures to be linked to teenagers. But study after study shows that this is the reality. In my opinion, it earns teens a seat at the table and their due respect as significant players in our marketplace. So, as marketers, how do we reach them and how do we make it stick? Teens are subdivided into more lifestyle groups than just about any other demographic.