E-commerce booming in Russia

Added: (Fri Jun 13 2003)

Pressbox (Press Release) - 46% of Russia’s 10 million internet users have made at least one on-line purchase with books and videos the most popular categories. Other products widely bought online include electronic devices including PCs and software, often for office use. However unlike the situation in the west where most payments are made by credit or debit card, 60% of all payments were made in cash on delivery.

These were the key findings of the fourth wave of the online survey The Online MonitorTM , conducted in Russia by the independent market research agency MASMI Research between April 1st and April 30th 2003.

The results of the survey testify to the growing role of the internet in Russia in especially in the expending business of e-commerce. Other findings from the survey were:

Nearly 20% Russians living in urban areas are now online, up from 13% in 2002

The bulk of the Internet users live in or around Moscow (38%) and Saint Petersburg (9%).

10 million Russians have internet access

Russian Internet users are characterised by their high level of education with 78% having completed a University degree or equivalent.

89% of visitors to Russian websites live in Russia and 5% live in other CIS countries.

Advertising awareness and response in Russia is high with 84% of internet users reporting that they had seen online advertising for mobile telephones and 74% for PCs in the previous two weeks. For click-throughs the figures were 57% for mobile phones and 44% for PCs.
The profile of internet users in Russia still differs significantly from the West. For instance, Russian women are half as likely to use the Internet while in many Western countries women are overtaking men in terms of Internet usage.

The main trend in the last two years has been the development of Internet penetration in-home. Nowadays in-home Internet users represent 80% of all Internet users in Russia. In additions 70% of these users also have access to the Internet from their place of work. However, at home, only 12% of Internet users have access to a high-speed connection to the Internet, most of them still depending on a dial-up connection. In the workplace most companies are connected through the Internet through a fixed line. The development of high-speed connection in Russia is increasing but it is only available in cities of more than one million inhabitants.

The average Russian Internet user goes online nearly everyday and never less than 5 days a week, spending an hour or more online per day. Russian users are becoming gradually familiar with new Internet tools such as internet trading, auctions and alternative systems of payment. For an overwhelming majority (90%), e-mail is the most popular tool used over the Internet as it allows effective communication without having to disclose one’s telephone number. Search engines are by far among the most popular websites visited. Websites specialised in news online are also regularly visited, as they are easily accessible and considered as a practical source of information.

The Online MonitorTM , based on an extensive online survey and conducted twice a year, provides indispensable information on Internet development in Russia. It allows websites and multinationals participating in the survey to gain a deeper understanding of their customers and hitherto adapt their marketing strategy to the evolving market.

As Arseniy Tarasov, New Business Development Manager of Cisco Systems Russia put it: ‘It has helped us address our customers online in a different way. After just two waves of the survey, we have a deeper understanding of our customers’ needs and our decision-making process is more customer-driven’.

The sample of Spring 2003 consists of 7,200 internet users randomly approached through over 50 well-visited Russian websites, among which cnews.ru, mail.ru, vedomosti.ru, rian.ru, aif.ru and the RLE network.

Full detailed information related to methodology and research results are available from Xavier Brandt, MASMI Research UK, 020 7583 7584 or e-mail
x.brandt@masmi.com