Russian alternative payment method firm Yandex.Money, in cooperation with leading market research and information group TNS have conducted a survey to help better understand the popularity of electronic payment methods among Russian online shoppers.
The survey is the first of its kind to include participants in the 12-17 age demographic as well as the 46-55 age category. A total of more than 2,800 respondents participated in the survey.
Electronic money or E-money was ranked in the top 3 E-payment methods. The survey found a total of 97% answered they are aware of the term and concept with 46% of them using an E-money service to pay for goods and services at least once in the past 6 months. E-money also proved to be the preferred method of payment for online purchases ranking over online banking and SMS Payments , which received 31% and 37% respectively.
Younger demographics, ages 12-17, are more prone to use E-money for online purchases with 53% preferring the method over other conventional solutions. The older demographic, ages 46-55, seemed more split on deciding, with an equal 68% for both E-money and traditional bank cards.
Yandex.Money was ranked as the most widely used E-money service. Among all those who participated, ages 12-55, 22% of them have used Yandex.Money at least once in the past 6 months. Use percentages of other services go as follows: QIWI.Wallet — 21%, WebMoney — 19%, PayPal — 14%, and Money@Mail.ru — 6%.
Yandex.Money and Qiwi reigned over its competition with the younger age group and both attracted 27% of the 12-17 demographic. Direct competitors WebMoney and PayPal fared less and drew in only 24% and 14% respectively.
The 46-55 age demographic chose WebMoney and Yandex.Money with 46% and 40%, respectively. Qiwi and PayPal raked considerably less with rates of 29% and 27%, respectively.
When looking at genders, the survey found both men and women use electronic money equally. It was that found most users of E-money services are managers or professionals with medium to high incomes. Most of them are advanced Internet users (40%), but the proportion of those who have only recently mastered the Internet is also high (35%).
In the 12-17 demographic, males from above average income houses are more active when it comes to paying with E-money. The older age group was prominently dominated by women with 54% using E-money services, 48% of whom are new to the concept of Internet usage.
E-money is mainly used for payments of mobile services, internet access, home utilities, and purchases at online stores. In Russia, E-money is also popular for sending funds between users.
The younger crowd is more prone to spending money online for online gaming purchases than any other demographic. Older users use E-money services mainly for goods and services. More than 40% of older users pay for utility services in e-money, and over 20% use it to pay fines and taxes.
Images and charts are courtesy of Yandex.money and TNS.
