STORES Magazine - January 2009 - (Page 53)

fit is enhancing the current business. If you have to go to a place just to use the Internet, you are more likely to stay home or go to the office. But if you can get reliable, secure Internet services at the places where you want to spend time, then that is a win-win.” Some analysts believe that as free WiFi becomes more commonplace, retailers will see opportunities for incremental revenue by encouraging users to pay for value-added downloads like music, video and movies. In airports, for instance, travelers could download movies before boarding their flights. Turnkey managed service Emerging operational models are helping to offset issues involving bandwidth, security and cost. Single Digits, for instance, provides a turnkey managed service — meaning all the software, networking monitoring, authentication, security and reporting emanates from one of the company’s three U.S. data centers. For retailers, that operational scenario means they receive business-class service and support while maintaining a minimal technology footprint. Single Digits staffs call centers 24/7 and answers the phone in the name of the retailer. About nine in 10 calls are from end users with easily solvable questions about misconfigured laptops, seWWW.STORES.ORG curity settings or firewall issues, Goldstein says. Reporting tools inform retailers how many users are logged in at a given time and/or have used the service and also offer insight into same-store sales and repeat business. Users at Silver Diner are given a user name and password that can be accessed at any location. “When they get a business lunch of four people coming in there [buying] four steak sandwiches, it more than covers the cost of their Wi-Fi service for a month,” Goldstein says. “If they are doing it once a week, then their return on investment is four or five times that.” Keep Wi-Fi separate For improved security, Silver Diner keeps Wi-Fi traffic separate from store business functions by running additional DSL broadband lines. “That guarantees that the data is not going to cross,” Snow says. “It’s a little more expensive to do it that way, but it is worth it in the long run. You’re also not worried that if you have five or six customers and they’re all pulling down a big file, it’s going to affect your point-of-sale transactions.” Beyond requiring them to log on, Silver Diner imposes no restrictions on customers’ usage, and the service can be marketed to meet the needs of individual stores. For instance, locations likely to draw business customers may set aside dedicated meeting spaces for Wi-Fi users. During piloting, Silver Diner had some concerns that Wi-Fi users would gobble up table space during peak periods, but that proved to be a minimal consideration. Usage varies, but stores typically accommodate 30 Wi-Fi patrons per day. “We see an average usage time of about 47 minutes [per customer], Snow says. “The managers aren’t complaining that people are sitting there and the servers aren’t complaining. It seems that in our environment, most people are coming in and using it while eating their StORES meals.” M.V. Greene is an independent writer and editor based in Owings Mills, Md., who covers business, technology and retail. STORES / JANUARY 2009 53 http://WWW.STORES.ORG

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of STORES Magazine - January 2009

STORES Magazine - Jauary 2008 Contents Executive Editor's Page President's Page Mechanical Marvel P&G Invests in Ocado Now I Remember What Shoppers Think 10 Things You May Have Missed Numbers Worth Counting Full Price/Markdown Retail People Breaking the Monotony Multi-Channel Concept2Watch E-Commerce Analytics Category Management IT Systems In-Store Technology IT Systems Communications Website Strategy Communications SOA Energy Video Surveillance Employee Theft Online Fraud Industry Perspective Loeb Retail Letter ARTS Update Point of View NRF News Retail Crossword End Cap

STORES Magazine - January 2009

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