Business services, also called business support services, are a variety of industries and businesses that provide support for customers’ operations. These businesses include IT service providers, maintenance professionals and other business professionals who offer a variety of technical and service-related help to companies and individuals.
Unlike product businesses, service businesses rely on intangible value rather than physical products to deliver the value they promise. As a result, service business managers must think differently than product company managers about how to design their offering and how it will affect their business performance.
A service-based approach to business management focuses on four critical elements of service design. They are:
Design – The quality and efficiency of the service are directly affected by the way it is designed. This involves designing the process by which the service creates benefits for customers, their physical possessions and their intangible assets.
Involvement – The service experience is often an active one, and customer input affects how fast and well the service is delivered. For example, a customer who dithers at a fast-food counter can slow down the service for all of those in line behind him.
Scalability – The ability to add and remove services quickly is an important benefit of operating a service-based business. This flexibility allows business owners to respond to industry trends and target market demands without affecting their core business infrastructure.
A large number of business enterprises depend on specialized business services to meet their needs for production, safety, cost and convenience. These services are typically based on banking, transportation and warehousing, insurance and communication.