A World of Wi-Fi
Opportunities
New research
reveals substantial business opportunity within Wi-Fi services.
Cisco recently conducted an online survey of 620 U.S. mobile
users to better understand their needs and behaviors, current and future use of
public hotspots, and unmet demands. The results were clear:
· Consumers increasingly rely on and prefer Wi-Fi for connecting
their devices to the Internet. In fact, the Cisco research reveals that
the average smartphone user employs Wi-Fi 44 percent of the time. This is a
significant increase from just one year ago, when one-third of the total
smartphone data usage was through a Wi-Fi connection, rather than a mobile
network.
·
A remarkable 70 percent of mobile users are now using public Wi-Fi
hotspots. According to the survey, close to six out of ten public Wi-Fi users
now connect to a hotspot at least weekly, and one-third connect more than once
a week. Users spend an average of 44 minutes connected to these hotspots.
What does this mean for consumer-focused companies, service
providers, and other businesses? Opportunity. And lots of it.
Taylor highlights three business models that are ripe with
opportunity:
1. Enhanced Retail
Experience. Imagine a service that would
enhance your in-store retail shopping experience on your own Wi-Fi-enabled
mobile device at a large retailer. The service could include such things as
product information, an in-store location finder, integrated shopping lists,
coupons for special offers, and automated checkout.
2. Enhanced Airport
Experience. Imagine a service that would
enhance your experience when you are in an airport. The service could include
such things as airport information, mobile check-in, maps and directions,
coupons for special offers at shops and food outlets, and flight and gate
alerts.
3. Enhanced Public
Venue Experience. Imagine a service that
would enhance your experience on your own Wi-Fi-enabled mobile device while you
were in a large public venue, such as a shopping mall, amusement park, sports
stadium, or resort. The service could include such things as venue information,
maps and directions, coupons for special offers at shops and food outlets, and
information on upcoming events.
The
Cisco research reveals consumers are eager to embrace such services to enhance
their experiences in retail locations, airports, hotels and resorts, stadiums,
and shopping malls. And while many consumers are concerned about who will have
access to their data and how it will be used, most recognize that they will
have to relinquish some of their personal information to get a better mobile
experience.
Taylor
offers several pieces of advice for businesses seeking to capitalize on the
emerging prospects of Wi-Fi services:
· Actively pursue new
Wi-Fi monetization opportunities. Develop
new offers that enhance the customer experience and deliver new sources of
revenue.
· Take advantage of
technical and business capabilities. Combine
the inherent capabilities of Wi-Fi with personal metadata and customer
relationship management (CRM) data to create compelling new localized offers.
· Develop proactive
personal data strategies and communications. Undertake extensive customer research to formulate comprehensive data
policies and strategies to allay customers’ concerns.
· Actively
communicate privacy policies. Make
customers aware of privacy policies and the value delivered from the localized
services.
“If
your business isn’t providing Wi-Fi access to customers then it better be the
number one item on your agenda,” Taylor suggests. “Customers expect it now
almost everyplace they do business, and if they don’t find it they are voting
with their feet.”
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