A business is an activity that produces and sells a product or a service to make profits. This can be done either by a single person or an organization that has a single owner and a lot of liability.
A company that outsources some of its duties because it doesn’t fall within its expertise or capability is called a business services provider. These services are referred to as intangible because they do not result in a tangible commodity that can be purchased or sold.
The most common distinction between goods and services is that goods can be stored for future use while services have to be provided to customers at the time of demand. This is one of the main reasons that consumers tend to view products as necessities and services as luxuries during tough economic times.
Another difference is that products are usually a part of a larger whole, while services are often isolated. For example, a restaurant provides food, but the ambience and setting of the restaurant are also services.
This makes it difficult for businesses that are not product-oriented to explain themselves. For example, a management consulting firm is probably a service business, but it is hard to say exactly what that business does.
Despite this, the fundamental questions about how to run a business remain the same for both product and service companies. Much of the traditional techniques–the soundness of an offering, the management of the people involved in its production and sales, and the coordination of processes–remain essential to the success of both types of businesses.