Dealing with today’s consumers requires a different set of rules. You would not be able to take the consumer for granted by any stretch of imagination – if you did, you would immediately be trashed, almost instantaneously, without second thoughts or repentance. The reason is simple – you are dealing with a new person with a young mind that is used to the fast pace of life. The new generation consumer tagged the CyberGen consumer, who has grown up in the era of iPhones and Social media networking, is not someone who would take things lying down. The typical consumer behavior is going through a profound change, which companies cannot afford not to take note of. More importantly, these are consumers that want transparency in what they interact with and what they consume.

Control Freaks: For one, today’s consumer demands more control over what he handles. He wouldn’t get bogged down by constraints that would force him to take what is available, but he would want to play an active part in and get involved with the product. For evidence, you can witness the current promotional campaign by Yahoo, which claims to have put the power back in the hands of the consumer. Yahoo’s “It’s You” campaign, which focuses on liberal changes that it has brought to its home page, tries to do precisely that – to make the consumer choose what he wants and to let him have just that.
Transparency Revolution: Today’s consumer expects a lot more transparency than the consumer of yesteryears. He doesn’t want things to be hidden behind veils of secrecy and wants to know what goes on and where he stands in the bigger scheme of things. You could find that even the traditionally secretive Federal Reserve is demonstrating a lot more transparency in the way it operated and takes decisions, under the new Fed Chief, Ben Bernanke. And the Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and the UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown are tweeting real time to tell people what they have been doing the very minute. Call it the “Transparency revolution”, if you may.
Unobtrusive Association: Further, if you thought your consumer was accessible as you are interacting with him on the internet, note that the CyberGen consumer wouldn’t like you interrupting him in his interactions with peers; instead, you would be better off if you were a passive listener and being a friend only when in need.

In essence, today’s brands have a tricky new customer to deal with – someone who would reward brands handsomely and even become a devout follower if brands get on with him the right way, and someone who would plain ignore and walk past, if brands hit the wrong notes!