Macro trends and the growth in Chinese brands

In Russia, household appliances and electronics are now the biggest category in terms of spend across all ecommerce sales. It accounts for almost 18% of all online trade, and there has been a 28% year-on-year increase in sales in this category. Based on this alone, it should be of great interest to Chinese brands that want to increase their international exposure.

In the first half of 2024, sales of laptops increased by 30% in monetary terms, with 1.4 million devices purchased, and Asus, Huawei, MSI, Lenovo, Honor and Apple the most popular brands. Chinese smartphone brands gained market share, with Xiaomi gaining top spot, displacing Samsung. And in household appliances, Haier and Xiaomi are among the top ten in terms of customer affinity.

In terms of demographics, men aged 25–34 are the most active demographic by purchase frequency. And over 40% of shoppers make appliance and electronics purchases each year.

How they are buying: consumer behavior

Which channels are most popular

With regards to how Russian shoppers buy, online is the primary sales channel, with just over half (51%) buying only from online stores. But that isn’t to say offline stores are unimportant: 20% of shoppers buy from both online and in store, and the remainder from offline only.

At the same time, the share of retail apps is growing. Currently, almost half (49%) of buyers purchase household appliances and electronics through apps, while 51% go through sites.

Behavior through the year

Russian shopping habits are also affected by seasonal factors. While Black Friday and New Year are the peaks, there are a number of other mini-peaks throughout the year, including Single’s Day, Cyber Monday, Valentine’s Day, Women’s Day, the May holidays, and more. Further, data shows that sales tend to spike in the summer when homeowners are finishing home renovations and in need of new appliances, and they also tend to rise after year-end bonus payouts.

Loyalty programs, cash back, and installment payments Many Russian shoppers look for extra benefits when making a purchase, especially loyalty programs and cash back. In fact, 44% look for loyalty programs from appliance stores, and 33% from marketplaces. A further 38% look for cash back.

Further, 25% of shoppers for household appliances have already used installment payments at least once, and 29% of the target audience aged 25–34 pays in installments most of the time.

Brand loyalty

Brand plays an important role when choosing electronics but isn’t as important when choosing household appliances. For example, 85% of shoppers consider it important when buying a smartphone, and 53% when buying a computer, but that drops to the mid-thirties for household appliances.

Shoppers are open to purchasing new brands, but it helps if they have already heard of this brand. In fact, 45% of buyers of new brands had not heard of the brand before making the purchase.

Future purchase intent

In terms of future intent, within the next year, 50% of consumers plan to buy an appliance, and 27% plan to buy within the next three months. The most common next planned purchases are a computer, phone, or TV. It’s also good for brands to know that Russian shoppers look forward to sales and prepare for them in advance.

What it means

Understanding the demographics of Russian shoppers, what their intent is, and how they buy, is a key part of the puzzle for Chinese brands to connect with them. For example, electronics brands targeting young men may want to promote more heavily around the period when bonuses are paid out, and offer loyalty programs to sweeten the deal, while household appliance brands may focus more on the period of time when home renovations are completed, and promote heavily if they are relatively unknown.

But to do this successfully, it’s critical to understand what kinds of marketing and sales tactics are most effective.

Marketing and sales tactics you can leverage

Research phase? Invest in targeted SEA and apps

When starting to search for their next purchase, most Russian shoppers (75%) begin their search for electronics online, and the same amount compare prices before making a purchase. 72% of these compare prices at online stores or marketplaces, and 39% searched for pricing information using a search engine. Therefore, investing in these channels targeting pricing keywords helps to keep your brand top of mind at the earliest moment in the customer journey. Further, mobile apps account for nearly half of all online purchases, so investing in app-based advertising and driving app downloads can increase traffic and sales.3

Make gathering reviews your priority

After price, at 59%, the next most important criteria for selecting appliances is reviews, at 54%. You can do this in a number of ways; through making it easy to leave a review on your site or app, sending a follow-up email a couple of weeks after no delivery, offering an incentive to leave a review, and offering several options, such as social channels as well as your website.

Capture the long tail of search traffic with semantic keywords

When choosing home appliances, shoppers need more information about the product’s functionality and features. Use semantics to describe specific uses and scenarios, and encourage buyers to share their feedback. Further, provide detailed overviews of products from your range on promo pages.

Convert emotional sales with video and recommendations

For «emotional» purchases such as smartphones, laptops, and coffee machines, Russian shoppers are prepared to wait for the right moment. Brands can announce promotions well in advance using video ads to capture initial attention and showcase the product to consumers. For higher-ticket purchases, tactics like product consultation and targeted recommendations can guide potential buyers to the right products, improving conversion rates and average order values.

Think outside the box with how to target your audience

Moscow and St. Petersburg are both sought-after markets, and Moscow, for example, has a 39% higher CPC than the national average. By focusing on underserved regions where competition is lower, brands can reduce costs and tap into new markets. In addition, you may want to consider leveraging new ad formats such as ads in Telegram, video ads with an embedded product carousel, premium formats in search, or location-based advertising, to promote your products.

For instance, if a shopper is on their way to a physical store, you can still reach them via geo-targeted advertising with Yandex Navigator. This helps capture the attention of shoppers who are already planning to buy electronics during sales events, as well as those making unplanned, last-minute purchases.

...and don’t forget about loyalty programs

Since 72% of buyers rely on loyalty programs, accepting popular rewards like Yandex Plus points and offering cashback can sweeten the deal.

It’s time for Chinese brands to invest in digital and omnichannel

Yandex offers a number of advantages for Chinese brands looking to grow awareness and sales in the Russian market.

First, it covers 90% of Russian internet users, providing advertisers with unparalleled reach into the market. This is reinforced by access to 600+ targeting options, with a range of formats and cutting-edge tools for SEA, geotargeting, retargeting, video, and more, ensuring you get peak performance from your campaigns.

Further, advertisers can understand how customers move through the funnel and across different channels, thanks to smart features available within launched campaigns. With Yandex, your brand and performance work hand in hand.

Get in touch to see how Yandex Direct can help build your brand — and grow sales among Russian-speaking shoppers today!