New consumer research has found shoppers are more likely to spend additional time in a store offering free public Wi-Fi than a store that does not offer Wi-Fi access.
The benefit of increased dwell time from those using free store Wi-Fi was revealed in a recent survey conducted for RetailTechnology.co.uk among nearly 5,000 visitors to U.S. retail properties. It explored consumer preferences around the increasing prevalence of free Wi-Fi service in stores in the U.S. and the U.K.
Wi-Fi software and service provider Boingo Wireless served free Wi-Fi users an online questionnaire, fielded via the Wi-Fi networks it operates at shopping centers operated by Boingo partners including Caruso Affiliated, Glimcher, Westfield and Urban Retail.
Nearly three out of four (73 percent) of respondents (both men and women) said they were more likely to spend additional time in a store with Wi-Fi than one without it. “The mobile device is becoming a channel of information, as well as transaction, for consumers,” says Doug Lodder, Boingo Wireless vice president of business development for retail and stadia. “If you’re going to go into a mall or store and get onto their network, you’re likely to be looking to solve challenges or questions you have there and then. So it’s up to the retailer to make sure the service is delivering value to them.”
Shoppers surveyed were most interested in staying connected to social media while shopping, with 69 percent reporting that they use social media including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. They were less interested in staying abreast of the latest news while shopping. Only 18 percent reported that they check the news via their mobile device while shopping.
Lodder says the retail property owners Boingo works with recognize that visitors use the free Wi-Fi for research: “Giving shoppers the technology embraces the fact they are going to do some research but it can also serve them offers and empower salespeople with tablets to help them too.”
The survey found that 30 percent of shoppers said they had reviewed products online and compared online and in-store pricing while in a mall. Split out by gender, the Boingo survey found that men edged out women in reviewing products online while in-store, with 33 percent of men who completed the survey reporting they price-check versus 27 percent of women. As far as price-checking while in-store was concerned, the split was the same between male and female at 30 percent.
“Today’s shoppers are never without their mobile devices and they’ve come to expect a retail experience that reflects their connected lifestyles,” says Jackie Levy, executive vice president of operations for Caruso Affiliated, a privately held U.S. real estate company. “We’ve found offering Wi-Fi throughout [Caruso properties] The Grove and The Americana at Brand is essential and gives us new ways to engage with our shoppers and improve their shopping experience. As part of The Grove’s 10-year anniversary last year, we launched a custom app, which makes it easier for our shoppers to make dinner reservations, park at our center and request special concierge services as they shop. The feedback that we have received from our guests and retailers has been extremely positive.”
This engagement can offer additional insight into shoppers’ preferences and behaviors, Lodder says. “If the retailer offers customers access to the information they’re looking for [online], they are more likely to share information about themselves. As the network operator, we’re the ones capturing the data and helping turn it into actionable insight. Every retailer is looking for something different.”
Boingo Wireless surveyed 4,814 shoppers at more than 30 malls across the U.S. in the third quarter of 2013 (May 7 to September 23); 46 percent were female and 45 percent were male. One-third of all respondents were between the ages of 18-24, with one out of four respondents in the 25-34 age group.