The value of Kolesa Group's products lies in enabling buyers and sellers to interact effectively with one another. Kolesa Group's journey began in 1996, and over the years, the company has transformed from a newspaper into an IT business, entered new markets, evolved into a major player, adopted new technologies, all while continually competing with other platforms.
How does the user journey look today in our products?
Imagine someone wants to sell or buy a car/real estate but lacks advertising and sales skills. We provide all the opportunities and tools—ranging from content to contact—to facilitate a quick and independent transaction.
In the past, one had to visit newspapers, fill out a paper application with all the details to place an ad, and stand at auto bazaars. Today, submitting an ad can be done in just a few minutes. We offer access on Kolesa.kz to a million-strong traffic of people searching for cars. With the unique opportunity to sell used cars on credit, we provide direct contact with buyers through messages within the app.
For those looking to buy an apartment on Krisha.kz, we produce analytical articles, instructions, and guides on mortgages; offer map searches and various parameters; provide subscription notifications for new ads; a favorites list; and a vast database of listings to choose from, along with direct contact with the seller.
Every year, millions of Kazakhs make real estate and auto deals through our products without unnecessary hassle. We have achieved incredible results after many years of hard and dedicated work because we build our business around the best model adopted by IT companies worldwide—focused on people and solving their problems.
Creating user-friendly products through user and data engagement
Fully transitioning into an IT company in 2015, we worked to ensure our IT products are user-friendly, understandable, safe, and effective. In 2013, the Kolesa.kz mobile app was launched, followed by Krisha.kz in 2015. At that time, the Kazakh market was skeptical about the app concept and was reluctant to invest in it. We were primarily competing against websites, forums, and classified platforms like "Center of Gravity," "From Hands to Hands," and OLX.
Since 2017, the company has adopted a data-driven approach—we began investing in the big data of our products, researching users and the market. Why? If potential clients are turning to competitors, it means our products are not providing full value. Customers have a choice. They choose us because, thanks to data, we identify our weaknesses and iteratively work to offer better functionality and service.
For instance, in 2024, we implemented an expensive technology for number masking or "protected" numbers. When posting an ad, users can check a box so that their real number remains hidden—preventing data theft and avoiding messages in other messengers. We allocate 1% of our monthly revenue from ad promotions to this technology. We have reduced spam from fraudulent sources by 52% and protected users from hundreds of scam calls.
To identify fraudsters, we created a call center that makes 500,000 calls per month to verify listings.
Regular launches of new projects and business models
Since 2018, we have launched several exciting projects, while some had to be closed. We entered the Uzbekistan market with Avtoelon.uz and developed Market.kz, which became Kaspi advertisements in 2022. Within our products, various sections and businesses were launched and developed annually: "New Buildings," "New Cars," "Spare Parts Marketplace," "Roof Agents," "Verified Cars." Many of these sections were initiated based on extensive research and requests from our clients.
For example, clients requested a "New Cars" section with a catalog and reviews because it was convenient for them to view everything on Kolesa.kz. Each business model requires significant investments and the commitment of the entire team. The hackathon culture drives teams and encourages them to find innovative solutions. The entrepreneurial spirit of the company in 2024 continues to enable us to create MVPs (minimum viable products) in 2-3 months, launch them, and test them.
Increasing value through paid services
The value of our products lies in the safe and effective connection between sellers and buyers. Once our audience surpassed 2 million users, it became more challenging to communicate this value through our products. When searching for a car, users were presented with up to 1,000 competing listings vying for attention. How do we assist those needing to sell quickly? We offer promotion with a broader reach—advertising.
In the classified business segment, this is a common practice. For instance, in the American Zillow, there are no free services, and on the German Mobile.de, the cost of placing one ad starts from 69 euros per month. If you want to sell an apartment, you can do so on Instagram, but advertising there is expensive.
The very first paid promotion emerged during the newspaper era—people would highlight their listings. This practice transitioned into IT products. We began actively working with paid services back in 2017, as the number and requests from clients have grown each year. The variety of fraudulent schemes is also increasing, which we tirelessly combat, including through paid services. We strive to make fraud unprofitable and risky, as a digital banking trail is necessary.
After introducing paid ad submissions on Kolesa.kz, complaints about them decreased by 58% because ads are published by real users. At the request of clients on Krisha.kz, who faced issues with fraudsters stealing contacts and ads, we launched document verification for rental apartments and later introduced paid submissions. In August 2024, 83 out of 100 clients selling/renting on Krisha.kz rated our service 5 out of 5 (NPS 72). Ongoing analysis and subsequent compliance with client requirements is an endless and costly process that we refer to as enhancing the customer experience.
Continuous implementation of new technologies
We began implementing artificial intelligence (AI) before it became a global trend. In 2018, we launched our first "robot"—models based on machine learning (ML) that checked ads: first the text, then the photos. The volume of ads grows every year, and with the efforts of 39 employees and one AI, we verify 83,000 ads daily. The models quickly and accurately identify prohibited words and images in the listings.
In 2022, we developed an ML model that detects duplicate photos previously identified in fraudulent activities. We could not find analogs of such a service, so we invested in hardware and the long-term development of the service.
Among our recent releases based on big data and ML, which we created in response to user requests: in 2024, we revamped the main screen on Kolesa.kz and introduced a recommendation system that made car searches even more convenient. We developed the "Property Valuation" feature—one of the most popular functionalities among Krisha.kz clients. All innovations are created by a team of experts in their field, who not only build great products but also engage in educational projects, speak at conferences, write articles, and help the IT market in Kazakhstan to grow.
In September 2024, the company celebrated its 28th birthday. Throughout the years, despite various challenges and competition, we remain committed to our mission—to build high-quality and beloved IT products for Kazakhstanis that help them buy and sell in the realms of real estate and automobiles daily.