It’s hard to imagine any business not using WiFi technology in this digital age.
If you own a brick-and-mortar business, you must be looking for ways to use WiFi to increase customer engagement. Why?
Because you know that conversion relies heavily on engagement with customers, it turns first-time visitors into regular guests and, eventually, loyal customers.
Many restaurateurs use free in-house WiFi marketing to achieve that. A 2019 survey states that 41% of guests regard WiFi availability as important to a satisfying guest experience. The same survey says 63% of restaurant owners agree that it is essential to provide WiFi for customers.
Today, having a guest WiFi network is no longer just an extra but is the norm for everyone.
What are ways to use WiFi to increase customer engagement in your restaurant business?
10 Ways to Increase Engagement With Customers
Providing free guest Wi-Fi has recently progressed from a nice amenity to a must-have for businesses. Guest Wi-Fi has brought benefits to those who already have it, including engagement with customers. In a recent study, 62% of businesses reported that customers spend more time in their place after providing WiFi. Half of that number claim that customers made more purchases during their extended stay.
Curiously, some businesses are afraid that guests can find cheaper options online with free WiFi for customers. It is already a foregone issue for restaurants since everyone can access information using smartphones through data anyway. But who would waste more time looking for another place to dine when they are already seated in one?
The main point? Allowing guests to access a wireless network increases their likelihood of staying longer in your restaurant. Isn’t that a good customer engagement strategy?
The race to find ways to use WiFi to increase customer engagement faces no end. The benefits of free WiFi for customers increase along with developments in technology. Customer service improves along with it too.
In-house WIFi is no longer just for the customers’ convenience but covers a range of business functions. Here are five areas where restaurants have increased WiFi coverage to improve customer service.
1. Increase WiFi Coverage: Discreet Customer Service Interaction
Usually, guests prefer to enjoy privacy when they have their meal in a restaurant. At the same time, they would also appreciate receiving offers now and then. Such offers may include the dessert of the day, end-of-day take-out suggestions, or invitations to an upcoming event.
Some restaurants have learned to increase WiFi coverage with discreet customer service interaction by occasionally sending ads, which yielded results. Customers like being informed, giving them the feeling of being critical. Along this theme, virtual menus and kiosks are new ways to use WiFi to increase customer engagement.
Ads also facilitate impulse purchases and boost customer satisfaction. It can reduce the risk of a sale loss. Customers love being in control rather than having a staff pushing to upsell. They would prefer having the option to mute ads temporarily, view ads later, or ignore them altogether.
In a less conventional setting, WiFi networks are also used discreetly to gather contact information for social network marketing. Restaurants can use social media and online marketing, such as emails and newsletters, to promote their businesses. These encourage customer engagement outside traditional boundaries, add to customer experience, and even persuade customers to return.
2. Increase WiFi Coverage: Offer a Tailor-Made Customer Experience
Another way Wi-Fi has improved customer service is in providing tailor-fit experiences to individual customers. Restaurants can welcome returning customers by providing personalized offers based on previous transactions.
For example, a seafood-loving customer will appreciate an invitation for a seafood recipe sampling. One of the ways to use WiFi to increase customer engagement is to request an RSVP confirmation from clients.
Such personalized experiences forge strong customer relationships and create marketing ambassadors out of your loyal customers.
3. Increase WiFi Coverage: Online and Offline Experience Go Together
Nothing can be more effective than having your online marketing work in harmony with your physical business. As a matter of fact, successful customer service is guaranteed if both work hand-in-hand.
For example, some have used the email list generated from free Wi-Fi data to drive foot traffic to upcoming events. You can offer your venue in advance to a birthday celebrant picked from your customer list. Deliver personalized offers to previous visitors, as in the example above, to entice them back.
Practices that gained more enforcement during the pandemic include cashless transactions.
It belongs to new ways to use WiFi to increase customer engagement.
Ultimately, the goal is to have your online and offline mediums working together for consistent year-round sales.
The benefits of guest Wi-Fi networks are not limited to the front end of a business. It is beneficial to the back-end operations too. Any active device within range of a router can be detected and added to the data for analytics. This data is crucial to back-end marketing operations.
Measuring foot traffic around your business tells you if visitors are merely passing by or ending up at your tables. This information can help you decide on staffing adjustments or frontage design.
Customer service also improves when your business’ marketing team works to address foot traffic. They learn to offer what customers are looking for in your business.
5. Expanding Your Customer Relationship Management
Customer relationship management (CRM) is your business strategy for managing your relationships and interactions with your regular and potential customers. An established WiFi CRM system gives companies direction. It helps keep their connection with customers, streamlining their operations and improving their bottom line.
The information in your CRM, combined with the data gathered in your location, is a powerful marketing tool. It gives you a clear picture of your customer base and gives you the ability to personalize your marketing campaigns.
Enhancing customer experience through free Wi-Fi is not limited to these five areas we discussed. The world of social network marketing is constantly evolving. New technologies surface, and finding ways to use WiFi to increase customer engagement has no end. Organizations using WiFi to improve customer services are ahead of the pack and will most likely thrive.
How WiFi Marketing Facilitates Customer Engagement
Just what is WIFi marketing? WiFi marketing is making your WiFi work to market your business. If you’re already offering free WiFi on-site, take steps now to get the most out of your investment.
Use Social wifi marketing in place of wifi marketing. However, social WiFi gives more weight to the social networks side of what WiFi marketing seeks to accomplish.
WiFi marketing seeks to encourage your customers to enter your loyalty program. They gain access to your business’s free guest wireless network. By opting in, their information is stored for data analytics and online communication purposes. This process enables your business to communicate directly with your customer’s mobile device.
Social WiFi marketing facilitates ways to use WiFi to increase customer engagement. It gives a digital platform for both on-site and off-site customer engagement.
Upon logging in, your customer will be directed to a customized landing page (also called a ‘captive portal’). That portal will consistently advertise your business. With this portal technology, you can feature your social media page, announce events, promote ongoing sales, and many more. It aids brand recall and keeps customer engagement even when customers have turned their attention to their phones.
Social WiFi puts you in a position to create targeted campaigns backed by data analytics and information regarding every customer. It helps you design a more relevant campaign, which is more likely to succeed than one created aimlessly.
Social WiFi enables you to engage customers through SMS and email anytime and anywhere. You can email interested customers to invite them to an upcoming event in your venue. A text blast can remind customers to drop by for an ongoing promo in your restaurant.
10 Ways to Use WiFi to Increase Customer Engagement
Having discussed how WiFi helps improve customer service, how can business owners use it as part of their customer engagement strategy?
There are several ways that business owners can employ the use of WiFi as part of the business’ customer engagement strategy. Each restaurateur must evaluate which of these ways fits the need of their restaurants, as every business has unique qualities.
Here are ten ways to use WiFi to increase customer engagement. Some of these are nouvelle or innovative ways to try for a unique customer experience.
- Offer free WiFi for customers in your store or business. Use their connected devices to send them personalized offers or promotions. Use the data you gather to design your marketing plan.
- Use WiFi analytics to track foot traffic and customer behavior in your store. Use that information to improve the shopping experience—plan and layout your store or restaurant with that information in mind.
- Use WiFi to power interactive digital menus or kiosks, which can provide customers with more information about products or services.
- Use WiFi to enable mobile payments, allowing customers to purchase directly from their connected devices. Use this amenity for cashless transactions.
- Create a loyalty program that rewards customers for connecting to your WiFi network. Use that data to personalize their shopping experience. Generate more return visits with a reward system.
- Create a social media campaign by encouraging customers to share on social media and other social networks using your WiFi. Share your business social media page with old and new customers.
- Use WiFi to gather customer feedback through interactive surveys or polls can help you improve your products or services. Create a portal for a suggestion box.
- Create a “guest network” where customers can connect to your WiFi network without signing up or giving personal information. A guest network can still provide significant information for data analytics.
- Use WiFi to create augmented reality experiences that enhance the customer experience and increase engagement. A virtual tour of your restaurant facilities and processes is a good start.
- Offer customer service through a chatbot or other digital assistant that you can access through your WiFi network.
Of course, the above list only encompasses some possible ways to use WiFi to increase customer engagement. As we said at the onset, WiFi marketing is an evolving business area. Every business owner should consistently keep abreast of developments.
As WiFi technology develops, expect more ways to use WiFi to increase customer engagement in areas where new marketing strategies using WiFi are concerned. These areas likely include the ones listed below, although they are not limited to these.
- Location-based marketing: Using WiFi to detect customers’ location and send them personalized offers or information about nearby products or services.
- Franchise WiFi: Franchise businesses are encouraged to include franchise WiFi in the bundle of services they subscribe to. With this set up, customers set up WiFi access using a single credential in any networked branch.
- Gamification: WiFi can be used to create interactive experiences for customers. Scavenger hunts and other trivia games can be played while connected to the network.
- Virtual reality experiences: Use WiFi to deliver virtual reality experiences to customers’ smartphones or tablets. Allow them to explore products or services in a more immersive way.
- Virtual queue: Provide WiFi for customers to join a virtual queue to wait for their turn. It is preferable to standing in a physical line.
Leverage WiFi to Increase Engagement With Customers Now
As you can see, WiFi technology is a powerful tool to promote customer engagement. Find a business marketing software to help you scale your business needs and grow your revenues.
To leverage WiFi marketing, small business owners need various marketing features. They also need a software solution that provides ways to use WiFi to increase customer engagement.
Beambox’s WiFi digital marketing solution can help you get the most out of your customer relations. You can get reviews, contact lists, and information from your new and loyal customers through your guest WiFi network. Beambox can help you plan, monitor, and redirect your marketing efforts to grow your business.
Learn more about Beambox and start growing your business now.
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