The study, of 150 hospitality and leisure firms with between one and 250 staff, also reveals that 70% believe a wireless network has become essential to the running of their business.
Jonathan Hallatt, regional director of UK, Ireland and South Africa for NETGEAR, said: “With the need to stay competitive and address customer demand high on the list of priorities for small and medium-sized hospitality and leisure venues, providing both staff and customers with the means to communicate, access and share information is of vital importance.
“A resilient wireless network is a key part of this, allowing staff to respond to guests and colleagues, and take bookings or orders in a timely, secure fashion. Failure to provide wireless connectivity for visitors may mean they will spend less money while they are with you, shorten their visit and never return.”
Other findings in the study include, 58% of those surveyed believe allowing employees to move freely around the venue while staying connected to colleagues and customers improves productivity, 85% believe it improves customer service and 82% say it is how they remain competitive.
However, over a third (35%) had considered abandoning plans after a bad experience with poor network quality and reliability, while 23% feared a possible data security risk and 20% were unsure about how to introduce wireless into their existing IT infrastructure.
NETGEAR is a global networking company that provides services to consumers, businesses and service providers. The company, founded in 1996, has offices in over 25 countries.