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QUALITATIVE RESEARCH CONSULTANTS ASSOCIATION
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has shown, also xenophobic. An extreme
showcase of Uncertainty Avoidance is the
Eastern Europeans’ love of fences. Most
people try to rationalize it (isn’t it safer if
we fence off our neighborhood?), but in
reality, the fence is a small-scale manifes-
tation of the same fear: that something
unexpected could happen in front of our
door. Only Slovaks show a little more
relaxed attitude.
For brands that want to conquer
Eastern European markets, it is always a
good idea to present the advertised prod-
uct as safe and long lasting. Claims such
as “for decades” or “without surprises”
are particularly popular in Polish and
Russian advertising. Oddly enough,
Eastern Europeans are not very keen
insurance buyers, perhaps because the
very thought of something unexpected is
not comfortable to contemplate.
As mentioned earlier, people in Eastern
Europe live under considerable economic
stress, and their culture does not help to
alleviate this. In fact, they find it hard to
enjoy life and are always ready to com-
plain. If a Polish friend asks, “how are
you?” the most appropriate answer is not
“fine” but just the opposite. You should
complain about anything you can find:
weather, health, or your boss are good
topics here.
Hofstede’s Indulgence scores in Eastern
Europe are among the lowest in the world.
Advertisers should avoid slogans like
“Spoil yourself ” or “A moment of pure
pleasure” as these are hardly buying incen-
tives for Eastern European consumers.
Although Eastern European countries
mostly share these characteristics, there
are also fundamental differences between
some markets. Here are some examples:
Russia
Russia is a country in which power
plays a major role—this is evident in
value-centered studies, and the Hofstede’s
Power Distance Index is also extremely
high (Power Distance measures to what
extent a society accepts that some mem-
bers are more powerful than others, as
opposed to everybody being equal). This
is evident not only in politics but also in
consumer behavior. Both men and
women take care to demonstrate status
symbols: martial arts and big cars for
men, strong makeup and expensive jew-
elry for women, all kinds of luxury items
for both sexes. Russians are the most fre-
quent buyers of luxury watches and
“If there is a characteristic
that applies to almost
the entire Eastern
European region, it is
mistrust toward strangers
and toward new or
unexpected situations.”
Monthly spending on food and non-alcoholic beverages
Germany
Czech Republic
Poland
Lithuania
16.2%
23.3%
10.2%
17.2%
Monthly spending on clothes and footwear
4.7%
Poland
9.2%
Russia
4.9%
Germany
3.3%
Czech Republic
3.1%
Hungary
Eastern Europeans’ love of fences showcases Uncertainty Avoidance
(as percentage of income)
(as percentage of income)