Comments on: The case for free wifi in retail stores http://www.davejenkins.com/2009/11/26/the-case-for-free-wifi-in-retail-stores/ Ecommerce Strategy in Asia Thu, 12 Jan 2012 01:45:22 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: john Webster http://www.davejenkins.com/2009/11/26/the-case-for-free-wifi-in-retail-stores/comment-page-1/#comment-33416 john Webster Wed, 30 Dec 2009 14:17:40 +0000 http://www.davejenkins.com/2009/11/26/the-case-for-free-wifi-in-retail-stores/#comment-33416 Just some quick observations. I'll send you an email as well. Small business does not have the resources, big business won't commit the resources. The stores that give free wifi don't care who uses it and for what. Typically it is only free because they have their own need for easy to access Internet or are not savvy enough to lock it up. The stores that do care want to charge to cover the expense involved in maintaining a network and helpdesk for the free service. It is surprising how much people expect from "free". Loitering is a common concern for establishments with free wifi. Reputation is a concern. If a store does offer free wifi and it happens to not work as expected, how long before someone posts the proverbial #fail statement or a snide remark on said social sites? How many of their followers are influenced by this spontaneous remark? There is a real risk to looking bad over a service that is not a core competency. From a personal perspective, I know that any time I am in a store looking for net access on my phone rather than shopping, well the the chance I'm going to look up items that are in *that* store is mighty slim. I want to check email, facebook, and twitter so I can feel like I'm anything but stuck where I don't want to be. The last thing I want to do is price compare and chance extending my stay. When shopping for items I need, I've typically done my price comparisons ahead of time on something with a larger screen and no physical sales person lurking over my shoulder. Just some quick observations. I’ll send you an email as well.

Small business does not have the resources, big business won’t commit the resources.

The stores that give free wifi don’t care who uses it and for what. Typically it is only free because they have their own need for easy to access Internet or are not savvy enough to lock it up.

The stores that do care want to charge to cover the expense involved in maintaining a network and helpdesk for the free service. It is surprising how much people expect from “free”. Loitering is a common concern for establishments with free wifi.

Reputation is a concern. If a store does offer free wifi and it happens to not work as expected, how long before someone posts the proverbial #fail statement or a snide remark on said social sites? How many of their followers are influenced by this spontaneous remark? There is a real risk to looking bad over a service that is not a core competency.

From a personal perspective, I know that any time I am in a store looking for net access on my phone rather than shopping, well the the chance I’m going to look up items that are in *that* store is mighty slim. I want to check email, facebook, and twitter so I can feel like I’m anything but stuck where I don’t want to be. The last thing I want to do is price compare and chance extending my stay. When shopping for items I need, I’ve typically done my price comparisons ahead of time on something with a larger screen and no physical sales person lurking over my shoulder.

]]> By: Aaron Burrows http://www.davejenkins.com/2009/11/26/the-case-for-free-wifi-in-retail-stores/comment-page-1/#comment-32522 Aaron Burrows Thu, 26 Nov 2009 21:25:46 +0000 http://www.davejenkins.com/2009/11/26/the-case-for-free-wifi-in-retail-stores/#comment-32522 I wholeheartedly agree. Unfortunately, a lot of companies still don't see it that way. They don't want to give customers WiFi for the same reason those stores don't have windows. They think a captive audience is the only way to make money. The ones who don't get on board will be left behind along with the CEOs who are afraid of social networking. I wholeheartedly agree. Unfortunately, a lot of companies still don’t see it that way. They don’t want to give customers WiFi for the same reason those stores don’t have windows. They think a captive audience is the only way to make money. The ones who don’t get on board will be left behind along with the CEOs who are afraid of social networking.

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