Business services are the intangible activities that aid businesses without delivering a tangible product. They can include anything from marketing, warehousing, and inter and intra-departmental communication to legal advice and financial management. In addition to their worth as an intangible asset, these services offer the advantage of being able to be provided in a way that can be customized to suit each company’s needs.
While some traditional techniques are still important for creating a healthy service business, new developments in the fields of design, research, and analysis provide an opportunity to develop more sophisticated approaches to managing this increasingly important sector of the economy. This article outlines an approach for crafting a successful service business that starts with the premise that the success or failure of any service business comes down to getting four things right or wrong.
The emergence of the business services industry in recent decades has resulted in an explosion of activity that is reshaping the economic landscape. In terms of overall employment, it represents the largest segment of the U.S. economy, outpacing manufacturing and even retail trade. This growth is driven by the expansion of outsourcing activities and the emergence of the knowledge economy.
These services are offered to both companies (B2B) and consumers (B2C). In the latter case, business services may provide support that is a necessary component of an organization’s production process, such as cleaning, security, or maintenance. They also may include advisory or consultancy services that are not directly related to production but help ensure that the organization is operating efficiently and in compliance with applicable laws.
