At AA&B, we think and write a lot about the importance of Gen Y as employees. If you're still not convinced that you need to understand this generation, ponder this: they're the new wave of small business owners, otherwise known as your customers.

Check out this information from a national poll of more than 1,200 consumers by workers' comp specialist Employers Holdings, Inc.

When asked whether they planned to start their own business in the next 5 years, responses broke down as follows:

• Gen Y:                            46 percent
• Gen X:                            35 percent
• Baby Boomers:           21 percent
• Silent Generation:       4 percent

More important, the respondents realized the importance of insuring their businesses and were especially interested in being able to work with their insurers online. Here's how Gen Y on a scale of 1 to 10 rated the importane of carrier online features:

• Online quoting:                                 86 percent
• Online customer service:              83 percent
• Online policy management:        81 percent
• Online payments:                            79 percent

Another recent survey shows us the other side of the coin: Millennials as consumers. And if you think of the younger generation as irresponsible free spirits who don't care about finances, think again.

According to Gen Y respondents to the Western Union Payments' Money Mindset Index:

• 11% do not have any financial strategy vs. 17% of consumers in general
• 41% plan to “reduce spending and increase savings” in 2011 vs. 32% of all consumers
• 62% saved less in 2010 than in 2009 vs. 75% of all consumers
• 2% are considering or have recently filed for bankruptcy vs. 4% of all consumers

What do you think this means for insurance agents and brokers? To me it looks like a great opportunity.