Earlier today I read a blog post by Peter Shankman entitled "Is it time to say goodbye to Free Wi-Fi?" The idea of the post is that with the availability and affordability of Mi-Fi products do we really need to have coffee shops offer free Wi-Fi?
Granted, Peter is talking to those people that are still scrambling for a coffee shop to get free Wi-Fi so that they can get their work done. In that instance Peter is 100% correct. If you really want to be able to work anywhere and freely there really is no need to rely on the hospitality of the corner coffee shop.
However, if you are a coffee shop owner you MUST offer free Wi-Fi. Let me explain:
Through marketing we know that when offering a product there are three categories of peripheral amenities that you must consider for any product or service. The must do, the nice to do, and the don't do.
A must do is what a customer expects from a product in your industry. The nice to do is your differentiation, what makes you different from some or all of you competitors. The don't do are things that will turn consumers away.
For coffee shops offering free Wi-Fi is what customers expect. Granted having free Wi-Fi doesn't sell more coffee. But not offering free Wi-Fi will keep you from selling as much coffee. This is not a contradiction. Customers will not make your coffee shop, diner, etc. a destination just because you offer Wi-Fi, but they will make your location a non-destination if they cannot get free Wi-Fi.
