E-commerce giant JD uses research firm to study consumers

Leading measurement company Nielsen has joined with Chinese online retailer JD.com to provide merchants with better insights on consumer behavior.

JD.com will share data including transaction amounts and consumer preferences, with Neilsen which will carry out offline surveys and data analysis to develop a more comprehensive and accurate sales picture.

"We will combine Nielsen's strength in offline data collection with online data from JD.com to get a clear and holistic picture of Chinese consumers' purchase behavior," said Vishal Bali, managing director of Nielsen China.

JD.com vice president Carol Fung said the collaboration would effectively use data about consumers combined with brand sales figures to help brands seize market opportunities and enhance competitiveness.

More than one quarter of China's fast-moving consumer goods were sold online In the first half of 2016.

Bali said access to more online sales data which will then be analyzed and turned into market insights will be useful to merchants.