— How did your business first get started?
We released our first model, a single-valve cement mixer called the BP-375, back in 2003. There was strong demand for this model from several industries. In 2007, we further expanded our product range. Now we have a factory that occupies more than 8000 square meters, our own delivery service, and dozens of product models.
— Tell us about the competition you faced
Back when we first started, demand was high for foreign companies, especially from Turkey. Now the Russian market has gone more in favor of Russian producers. 2013 was a turning point for us: we delivered 125 units and took first place for the number of completed projects in Russia.
— How has the recent economic situation in Russia influenced your development?
Our company was strong enough to use the changes in the currency markets to our advantage. They actually helped strengthen our market position — after all, our competitors import equipment from abroad. At that very moment, we launched a new product line for year-round use along with mobile units that can be set up for use in less than 24 hours. We also developed a less expensive series that companies with smaller budgets could purchase gradually over time. The same goes for companies just starting out – they needn’t have the full amount necessary to purchase an entire outfit.
— Is there a seasonality to your business?
Modern technology makes it possible to produce concrete all year round, even in the tough conditions typical of Russian winters.
— Tell us about your marketing strategy. At what point did you come to Yandex.Direct and what was your goal?
We began advertising in Yandex.Direct in 2007. At that moment, we understood that to develop our business, we needed to make sure that people know about us not only in our region, but across Russia.
In the very beginning, we spent just 5,000-10,000 rubles ($75-$150) a month in Yandex.Direct. We noticed the payoff almost immediately and made the decision to increase our budget. Now we spend about 200,000 rubles ($3,000) a month.
— What important lessons did you learn about your internet audience?
The average cost of a concrete production facility is 3.8 million rubles (just under $600,000). Our audience varies significantly, given that the person in charge of purchasing equipment could be a manager or might be any other employee, depending on the company. And while interest in our products surges during working hours, conversions and orders can take place at any time.
— How do you convince someone to spend 2-3 million rubles on a purchase via internet?
It’s a question of time and many other factors. As a company, we invest in our technological development and our brand, and do our best to be open, and this goes for our site as well. Potential customers want to see everything with their own eyes. Keeping this in mind, we added videos to our product description pages so that visitors could see how our equipment performs in real conditions and hear reviews and feedback from our real-life customers whose equipment we installed and commissioned. We noticed that potential clients began contacting us more after we added a feedback form to our site. We have a lot invested in the quality of the product photos and descriptions on our site. The site also has detailed descriptions with price information, additional options, diagrams, technical characteristics, and all certifications.
All of these factors work together, as a whole. We have partners who have already ordered four units from us. And every year, our customers come back to us, and this is really important.
— Tell us about your first campaigns in Yandex.Direct.
In the beginning, we had one search campaign and another for ad networks. Later, we learned how to separate our campaigns by the type of equipment and format, and how to use retargeting.
We have another campaign for users who already know about us and search for us by name in Yandex. This campaign has a CTR of over 50% and great page depth.
— Do you track smartphone traffic?
Yes, users search for us and visit our site from mobiles. We’ve had a mobile version of our page for quite some time. We’ve seen changes over the course of this year: 19% of visitors came via mobile device in June, in July — 21%, and in August — 24%. The trend is clear, and we've raised our bids for mobile ads in Yandex.Direct as a result, to make sure that mobile users come to our site first.
— How do you assess your ad campaigns’ effectiveness?
We track certain actions in Yandex.Metrica: leads or views of a specific section of our site. Yandex.Direct remains our main source of traffic: for example, over the past month, Yandex.Direct’s share of our total visits amounted to 43%. And Yandex.Direct brings the most visits conversions — 63%.
Our sales analysis has shown that half of all our clients contact us as a result of advertising, and 65% of them come specifically from Yandex.Direct.
We have delivered 105 units over the past ten months, and 75 of those clients found us through Yandex.Direct.
— Looking ahead, what can you say about your plans?
We are ready to become a player in markets outside Russia. We launched the English version of our site this year, and have had our products certified according to EU standards. This was not an easy process, but a necessary one if we wanted to respond to interest in our products coming from abroad. We don’t want to rest on our laurels. We’ve already signed contracts with companies in Latvia, Slovakia, and Bangkok. Not long ago, we welcomed potential partners from the African continent to our factory, and we are currently leading negotiations with them.