HOW CAN YOU GAUGE IF YOUR BRAND WILL BECOME A BUZZWORTHY PHENOMENON IN RUSSIA?
Greetings!
Exploring the Russian Market: A Walk in the Park? Determining the Potential Popularity of Your Brand in Russia.
Securing the triumph of your company goes beyond having a remarkable product; it necessitates adept pre-planning.
If you haven’t conducted market research
One of the most prevalent errors is neglecting market research (disregarding competitors, miscalculating consumer demand, etc.), which can lead to failure when striving to conquer the market.
Mars Inc. encountered such a predicament in the 1990s while endeavoring to enter the post-Soviet market. The company overlooked researching the realities of life in Russia and proposed chocolate bars as a lunchtime substitute.
Consumers were unwilling to accept the notion that a chocolate bar could replace a hearty soup and main course; chocolate bars were commonly perceived as treats to accompany tea. As a result, the company faced financial losses due to the ineffective strategy that had been devised.
However, everything changed when consumer audience research came into play. Snickers was repositioned as a chocolate bar specifically targeting energetic teenagers who detested soup but had a fondness for sweets.
This new approach not only resulted in a remarkable increase in sales but also propelled the company to the pinnacle of the market. A 2009 study conducted by “Profi Online Research” revealed that one out of every five young individuals aged 14-24 purchased chocolate bars on a daily basis, with an astounding 7 out of 10 of them choosing Snickers.
If you’re determined to replicate the success of Snickers, it’s essential to have straightforward methods to assess the demand in the Russian market. Let’s dive right into them.
How can market evaluation be accomplished?
To enter the market equipped and well-informed, it is crucial to undertake the following research:
Analyze the competition
Examining competitors demonstrates their competitive capabilities and aids in devising strategies that enhance marketability. Ignoring or neglecting the competition raises doubts about the future of your business. Let’s explore how to study competitors.
Firstly, identify the key stakeholders. This can be easily accomplished by conducting a search on Google or Yandex to obtain the top 10 results.
Keep in mind that you will have multiple search queries, so it’s important to analyze the outcomes based on their relevance to your business. This entails conducting more specific and related searches while noting the differences (e.g., a search for ‘green tea’ will yield different results than a search for ‘black tea’).
This approach will enable you to compile a list of direct competitors (7 to 10 would suffice) and indirect competitors (5 to 7). This list will serve as a foundation for formulating your strategy.
However, obtaining information about competitors is not the only requirement for a comprehensive approach if you aspire to become a market leader.
Search queries: assessing market demands
When embarking on research of the Russian market, particularly in terms of demand, search engines play a crucial role. In Russia, the most widely used search engine is Yandex, making it an ideal tool for market assessment.
To begin, simply enter the relevant keyword into the search bar.
For instance, let’s say you’re manufacturing home appliances, specifically washing machines. In this case, you would need to investigate the most common query, such as “washing machine.”
Examine the websites listed in the search results. When searching for “washing machine,” the results primarily consist of online shops.
Similarly, when reviewing the Google search results, we observe a similar pattern with the majority being online shops. However, there are also websites of home appliance manufacturers.
However, there are additional specific requests that warrant evaluation. In a previous article, we elucidated the word selection service known as wordstat.yandex.ru. Given that Google currently lacks such statistics, we will resort to Yandex once more. Therefore, let us reiterate the request for the term “washing machine.”
This service not only offers information regarding your primary inquiry but also provides insights on more precise and interconnected queries.
Advanced research
There’s no need for you to personally undertake intricate research of the target market.
In numerous instances, you have the option to acquire comprehensive research that includes competitor analysis, demand analysis, assessment of target audience needs, and analysis of priority distribution channels.
This not only saves you valuable time but also allows you to kickstart the development of a Russian market entry campaign once you’ve analyzed the provided information.
The cost of conducting complex analysis, utilizing various online and offline methods, varies based on the unique characteristics of the market. Generally, prices range from 1000 to 10000 USD. Our company also offers the option to purchase this research directly from us.
Alternative research methods
Monitoring
One effective approach to understand your target audience and gauge the potential demand for your products is by monitoring prospective consumers.
They typically have their preferred online platforms where they congregate, such as specific social networks, theme-based forums, and other internet resources.
For instance, if you are a computer equipment manufacturer, it would be beneficial to explore a popular platform like habrahabr.ru, which attracts an audience with a strong interest in technological advancements.
Search engines can also assist in discovering these information resources. For instance, if you use search terms like “computer forum” while focusing on the names of computer equipment manufacturers, search engines can provide relevant results.
Reconnaissance
It is important to remember that market analysis is an ongoing process, serving as more than just a starting point for future development cycles. Timely information will enable you to sustain market leadership in the long run.
For instance, we can draw inspiration from the intriguing experience of the American company Xerox.
The company has established an internal hotline dedicated to addressing competition and business matters.
Through this hotline, employees of the company provide valuable information about the market landscape. For instance, the sales department serves as a valuable source of insights on the current situation of competitors, including their backgrounds, equipment-related demands, and reasons for choosing to purchase from competitors.
In one instance, the company’s management received a message from the service department indicating that competitors were on the verge of introducing maintenance services for Xerox products. This timely information allowed the company to develop a strategic plan and take appropriate measures just as the competitor was about to launch the new service, thereby safeguarding Xerox’s market position from potential negative impact.
Case Study: Entry into the Russian Tea Manufacturing Market
Let’s explore a practical approach to conducting a quick and straightforward market research for tea manufacturers looking to enter the Russian market.
In this scenario, you have two distinct options: either establish your own website to directly sell tea or collaborate with existing sellers, such as online shops, to reach your target audience.
Who are the companies competing in your market?
Let’s input the search query “buy tea” into the search bar to obtain a list of merchants offering tea.
Here are the top five results in Yandex. Please take note of these results and continue with your research.
Now, let’s proceed with another research request relevant to manufacturers. Let’s search for “buy Chinese tea.”
What were the outcomes of our search?
To facilitate comparison, let’s present the results in a table format:
| Search engine advertising | clubcha.ru | dreamdrink.ru |
| tea-river.ru | 1coffee.ru | |
| 1coffee.ru | tea-river.ru | |
| Search readout | zelteal.ru | chadomic.ru |
| rusteaco.ru | intea.ru | |
| planetatea.ru | chai-na-chai.ru | |
| teaparty.ru | tea-philosophy.ru | |
| chadomic.ru | Wintergreen-Shop.ru |
As we devise our strategy for entering the Russian market, we have segmented our competitors based on specific search queries. The first column represents both direct and indirect competitors, while the second column focuses solely on direct competitors. As previously mentioned, our goal is to identify 7-10 direct competitors and 5-7 indirect competitors.
By continuing this analysis, we can refine our competitor list further. For instance, not all the shops in the second column may sell Puer tea, resulting in a different set of competitors for that particular query. The intersection of all specific search queries will provide us with a comprehensive understanding of the competitive landscape.
At this preliminary stage of data analysis, we have identified 3 competitors that appear in both search engine advertising and search results.
This indicates that our objective is to directly compete with these identified competitors. To gain insights into their offerings and evaluate their services, it would be beneficial to place an order and experience their service firsthand.
If you intend to collaborate with online shops, considering them as potential customers, it is crucial to familiarize yourself with the types of tea they already sell.
Based on our earlier research, we have identified three tea-selling shops:
- 1coffee.ru
- tea-river.ru
- chadomic.ru
Therefore, you can approach other shops from the list and offer your tea, as long as they do not already sell the same type of tea. Additionally, it is worthwhile to study the range of choices offered by 1coffee.ru, tea-river.ru, and chadomic.ru. This knowledge can help you craft a more unique or advantageous proposal, which can be further discussed during communication with the shop owners or decision-makers regarding potential collaborations.
What additional information should you gather about the market you intend to enter?
Certainly, it is essential to have a comprehensive understanding of your target consumers. If you plan to enter the Russian market as a wholesale supplier, you can assess the approximate shipment size based on the quantity required by ultimate suppliers. Furthermore, you can leverage data from business proposals developed for online shops. If you are considering the viability of opening a tea-selling shop, this data will be crucial for estimating the volume of sales.
By analyzing the search query “buy tea,” we can already ascertain the high demand for this product. Yandex indicates 55,990 monthly search results and 7 million responses for this particular query. This data reinforces the notion that tea is sought after in the market.
Next, we input the same query into the keyword research tool or selection of words service to access more comprehensive and detailed statistics regarding the subject.
Based on this data, it can be concluded that there is a significant demand for tea in the Russian market. When considering the cumulative number of all related queries, the figures indicate a substantial volume of interest in this topic.
Where should we focus our efforts to find the target audience?
The following question arises: Where can we locate potential customers?
Certainly, forums and social networks are promising avenues to explore.
There is a multitude of forums specifically dedicated to tea. These forums can range from dedicated tea web-portals to individual tea-related topics on forums unrelated to tea.
Additionally, it is crucial to harness the power of social networks. Let’s examine the number of tea enthusiasts, both in general and those specifically interested in Chinese tea, on vk.com, the most popular social network in Russia.
This audience represents your potential customers, or they may already be customers of online shops that will be selling your tea. Our previous article on SMM marketing provided insights on how to engage with this audience. If you are a tea manufacturer, now is the ideal time to enter the Russian market!
Let’s summarize the analysis algorithm:
- Research your competitors: Create a list of competitors and analyze their product offerings and services.
- Research the demand: Determine if people are actively searching for products and services similar to yours. Identify related products that the audience is interested in and assess the size of theme-based communities on social networks.
- Find your audience: Take note of relevant forums, social networks, and theme-based internet resources. Pay attention to discussions and concerns of potential customers.
As you can see, it is simpler than you might think. This process is straightforward and manageable.
Indeed, these methods of Russian market research are relatively simple and can provide a general estimation. However, it is important to note that they do not guarantee concrete results and should be used in conjunction with your intuition.
For more accurate data and professional insights that can explain various phenomena in the Russian market, it is advisable to seek the services of a professional marketing agency. The marketing research department of Quarter Billion Agency Group can offer valuable assistance in this regard. By availing their explicit research services, you can enter the Russian market with confidence and without fear of making misinformed decisions.