Business services are activities that support the core businesses of a company, but do not result in the creation of a tangible product. These activities include information technology, human resources, financial services and a variety of miscellaneous help that companies may require. The industry is growing rapidly and is expected to continue to do so in the future, owing to the growing need for outsourcing in various industries.

The most important characteristic of business services is that they are intangible and cannot be stored like inventory. This feature allows companies to outsource their noncore business activities and save on costs, while still having access to a high-quality service. In addition, businesses that offer business services are able to adapt quickly to changing consumer demands.

Despite the intangibility of business services, they can be differentiated from other goods and services through customer satisfaction and customer interaction. In the case of a service, customers are often integral to its production and can affect the outcome, for example a restaurant client who is upset with his meal can ask him to change it, or a telemarketer who is not able to sell a potential customer on a service might try to persuade them by describing the benefits they would experience.

Some business services have fixed deliverables, for example a plumber or house painter must visit the home to repair a leaky roof or repaint a room. However, other business services are more flexible and can be delivered at the client’s location, such as a videoconferencing call or a virtual assistant. This type of flexibility is a major selling point for business-to-business services, as it can reduce the time and effort required to complete a task and improve productivity.

As the global economy continues to improve, there is a growing demand for business-to-business services. As a result, some of the largest business-to-business services firms are emerging from countries such as India. Many of these providers specialize in a specific niche and provide customized services to their clients. These services can range from data entry and translation to accounting, marketing and more.

Providing these services requires a skilled and trained workforce. This is why most business-to-business service firms offer a comprehensive training program for their employees. They also provide a detailed consultation with prospective clients to identify their needs and expectations.

As a result of the increased affluence of some consumers, many of them have chosen to outsource certain tasks that they used to perform themselves in order to have more free time. This has led to a rise in the demand for business services such as lawn care and carpet cleaning. Likewise, the growing number of working women has increased demand for services such as child care and dry cleaning. These trends have also spurred the growth of new types of business services, such as consulting and outsourcing.