Business services are a group of supporting activities that help a company maintain its operations and deliver value to customers without producing any physical products. These activities may include information technology services, which support numerous other business functions, including marketing and finance. Other examples of business services are food services that offer convenience and a way to maintain work-life balance, real estate services, transportation services, delivery services, payroll services and utility services. Companies rely on these services for efficiency, cost savings and to avoid committing valuable internal resources to noncore tasks.
Because business services do not produce any tangible products, they are considered intangible. This characteristic makes them different from other types of work. It also means that a company cannot sell or trade business services for another commodity, as it can with goods. Because of this, a business must pay for business services through a service contract or other type of payment structure that provides value to the company.
As one of the largest service sectors in Europe, business services provide a variety of functions that contribute to economic growth and competitiveness. In particular, they support the production of both manufacturing and other service sector businesses. They can also improve the added value of a product through new combinations of goods and services or by providing more efficient services to customers. In addition, they enable companies to concentrate on their strategic-based goals and hire internal workforces for this purpose. At the same time, they can outsource labor that doesn’t fall within their scope of expertise or capabilities to business service professionals.
Some of the most common business services are ones that offer convenience and a way for employees to maintain work-life balance. For example, many companies need to rent space for their offices and retail stores, which is handled by commercial real estate agents. Other companies have in-office day care services that allow workers to bring their children to work and take care of them during the workday. This helps employees have a better quality of life at work, while improving workplace productivity.
Other common business services include accounting and bookkeeping services, which help businesses manage their finances and record transactions. These can be offered by either an in-house or external accountant. Similarly, a business can rely on IT services to help them create and manage data, as well as to improve the security of their technological devices. IT service providers can also help a company upgrade its software features and make sure that all devices are compatible with the latest software.
Other business services might include translation and interpretation, which help a business reach a wider range of potential customers. This is especially important for companies that do business internationally, where language barriers might otherwise prevent them from making sales. Finally, tech support services are a crucial part of business services as they help individuals and businesses troubleshoot computer and networking problems. These can be solved quickly, which helps businesses remain productive and efficient.