ALEXANDRIA, Va. – By 2020, Generation Z will make up 40% of all consumers. Understanding their habits and needs will be critical for savvy retailers, according to Payments Journal.

While millennials, the generation before Gen Z, grew up on the Internet, the newest generation cut their teeth on smartphones, networking and wallet apps. They are technically sophisticated but have shorter attention spans. They assess information instantly, rely on peer reviews and are quick to make decisions.

They know how to manage their money using their phones, with 70% making an in-app mobile payment within the past year. They prefer to make payments digitally using their mobile device instead of using a plastic card, and perhaps because they grew up in a recession, they aren’t inclined to go into debt.

Gen Z prefers a seamless shopping experience in which the payment is embedded in the experience and they can redeem loyalty points, rewards and offers in a single step at checkout.

Because Gen Z shoppers care about the experience and have short attention spans, retailers should make it easier and quicker for them to purchase products by allowing them to remain in their current context, whether on a phone, tablet or PC, and avoid directing them to a bricks-and-mortar store or the store’s website.

For more on Gen Z and their shopping behaviors, read “Better for You” from the July issue of NACS Magazine. The magazine is free to NACS members—subscribe today!