54% of Russians Make Impulse Purchases Online

Where do users learn about products? Most often — directly on marketplaces and in online stores: 30% of those surveyed named this discovery channel. The search bar works for 14% of respondents. Reviews and ratings account for the same amount of attention to new products — 10%. Another 10% named ads as a source of discovering new products. Finally, 17% learn about new products from relatives and acquaintances — word of mouth retains its weight even in the era of algorithmic recommendations.

According to the survey, the structure of the channels looks like this:

• marketplaces and online stores — 30%;
• recommendations from relatives and acquaintances — 17%; search bar — 14%;
• reviews and ratings — 10%;
• ads — 10%.

At the same time, advertising demonstrates a measurable effect specifically in expensive categories. Nearly half of purchases made after viewing ads fall on household appliances and electronics. This is the most "ad-dependent" category in the study.

For e-commerce players, the conclusions are obvious. First, the product card on a marketplace remains the key point of contact with the buyer — nearly a third of customer journeys begin here. Second, price and rating shape the decision jointly: a discount without reviews works worse than a balanced offer. Third, content — posts and videos — can trigger unplanned purchases in one in five users, making it a full-fledged sales driver rather than just a reach tool.

The survey by «Pochta Mail» and «Novosti Mail» confirms: impulse online shopping has become a mass behavioral model. More than half of Russians buy spontaneously, and the battle for their attention unfolds at the intersection of pricing, reputation signals, and content.