Half of customers want businesses to provide Wi-Fi: Plusnet

SHEFFIELD, ENGLAND: A Plusnet Business survey has revealed that the average Brit spends 10 hours a day being connected to the Internet. The study demonstrates how the demand for Internet access has increased, with almost a quarter (24 percent) of people saying that they need it to be able to update people should anything happen.

Small businesses need to take note that almost half (49 percent) of respondents said Internet access, provided by businesses, is needed in public areas. Over 40 percent of respondents in the North West, Northern Ireland, Scotland, London and Wales say that having access to Wi-Fi is a deal-breaker when deciding on a hotel, showing how much this can affect a business' bottom line.

This study by Plusnet Business has uncovered how much of an impact a decent wireless internet connection for customer use can bring to many sectors, with almost a fifth saying they will purposely choose a restaurant (17 percent), bar (17 percent), pub (17 percent), and shopping centre (18 percent), over one without it.

For nearly a third of respondents (29 percent), regular access isn't good enough, they have to be constantly connected and can't even queue or take a short journey without entertaining themselves online. Well over a third (46 percent) of respondents in London admitted that they needed to be connected to the Internet all the time, to stop the boredom of having to queue.

Talking about the survey, Nick Silverwood, Head of Business, Plusnet said: "Through the Plusnet Business survey we can see that installing something as simple as free Wi-Fi for customers can help generate repeat custom and definition within a market. With increased competition in the hospitality and retail markets, it's important for small businesses to understand how investing in customer broadband has the potential to really boost sales. With over one in ten (12 percent) respondents estimating that 21-30 percent of their profit is down to a fast and reliable Internet connection, there is a clear benefit to getting online."