Five ways Wi-Fi builds a better business

Not much is better than chocolate, but when it comes to creating a workplace environment that sets employees up for success and makes patrons feel welcome, there is one clear winner: Wi-Fi.

In fact, a national survey of entrepreneurs and small business IT decision makers, conducted by Bredin Research and sponsored by Comcast Business, found that offering free Wi-Fi — wireless internet service — works better at keeping customers happy than common “waiting area” conveniences like candy, water or magazines.

Now, coffee shops, bars, restaurants, retailers, doctor’s offices and others are leveraging Wi-Fi more than ever to attract new clientele, improve customer loyalty and raise their profile within the community.

Here are five key ways Wi-Fi can bolster your workspace.

1. Draw customers. Nearly eight in 10 businesses offering Wi-Fi (79 percent) say it helps keep customers happy while they wait. Also, 65 percent report it has encouraged repeat business, and 55 percent say it has brought in new customers.

1. Make customers feel welcome. Main Street business owners say Wi-Fi is equally or more effective at making patrons feel welcome than other amenities such as magazines (94 percent), community bulletin boards (91 percent), candy (90 percent) or water (86 percent).

1. Drive sales. More than half (55 percent) of businesses providing Wi-Fi believe it has resulted in higher sales per customer visit.

1. Build connections. Nearly 20 percent of the business owners surveyed promote themselves as “community hubs,” such as a meeting place for church groups, sports clubs or other community groups.

1. Boost productivity. Separate from offering Wi-Fi to patrons, respondents’ employees use Wi-Fi for business purposes such as accessing corporate resources (49 percent), tracking inventory (36 percent) and holding conferences with business partners and customers (35 percent). What’s more, 93 percent of these businesses believe that Wi-Fi enhances productivity. Companies with growing revenue were more likely than non-growing companies to use Wi-Fi as a customer amenity.

Because businesses more and more are seeing the value of Wi-Fi, Comcast Business has launched the nation’s first wireless gateway service built specifically for a commercial environment with an integrated modem equipped to produce dual-band Wi-Fi signals. Find out more.