Staying “up to date” with customers in small business waiting rooms now means much more than rotating out past issues of magazines. A recent survey by Bredin Research showed that providing free Wi-Fi goes much further than offering reading materials, candy or water.

“Businesses and entrepreneurs of all types recognize that wireless Internet access is a must for their patrons, and that providing free Wi-Fi can give them a competitive edge,” says Bill Stemper, president of Comcast Business, which sponsored the study. “More and more, we are seeing that if a business provides Wi-Fi now to its employees for business purposes, extending access to its customers is a logical next step that is a way to keep them coming back in the future. Given the challenges that small businesses face in today’s uncertain economy, we are encouraged that technologies like Wi-Fi will help sustain growth.”

According to the study, small businesses would do well to start with Wi-Fi – if they haven’t already. Those surveyed, 602 principals and IT decision makers at companies with 100 or fewer employees in the U.S., agreed that Wi-Fi helps keep waiting customers happy (79 percent); increases sales (55 percent); and makes patrons feel more welcome compared to magazines (94 percent), community bulletin boards (91 percent), candy (90 percent) or water (86 percent).

Those with concerns about offering free Wi-Fi – mostly those in business for at least two decades – cite fears of needing tech support (33 percent), employee distractions (33 percent) and cost (32 percent). Even so, of those that don’t currently offer it, 61 percent report they will either consider it or plan to provide it soon. And if they’re still concerned it will hurt productivity? Some 93 percent of respondents said it actually enhances productivity instead.

This article originally appeared on ColoradoBiz.