Services are the dominant economic sector in most developed countries. In the United Kingdom, they account for more than seventy per cent of all the country’s production.
Services are provided by the public, private and voluntary sectors.
A service is the work that we perform on people or for people and their possessions.
The work that we perform directly on people
- Healing
- Counselling
- Caring
- Hair and beauty treatments
- Education and training
- Professional advice
- Transport
- Catering
- Entertainment
The work we perform for people’s possessions
- Gardening
- Cleaning and maintenance of home and business property
- Removals and storage
- Business professional and technical services
- Business catering and entertainment
- Business travel and transport
- Repairs and maintenance
Contributing factors to the growth of the service economy
- Urbanisation
- Growth of the manufacturing industry
- Education
- Research and development
- Technology
- Travel and tourism
- Increased incomes and material standard of living
- The love of pleasure and entertainment
- Possessions that require professional cleaning and maintenance
- Marketing and trade
- The media
- Globalisation
Urbanisation
In rural areas most of the services that we now buy from commercial providers, we provided for ourselves or were freely provided by family, friends and the community.
The growth of the manufacturing industry
The manufacturing industry use a wide variety of technical and professional services, such as: commerce and distribution, repairs, cleaning and maintenance, consultancy, I T, legal, insurance, removal, storage and distribution, waste disposal, entertainment, travel and transport, catering, to name a few.
Education
Education itself is a big industry, from nursery right up to higher degree level. It is delivered by the private, voluntary and public sectors. Education also influences and determines our tastes, wants and needs than the less educated.
Research and development
Both the public and private sectors, education and industry are constantly carrying out research and development. These results in new services.
Technology
The advent of the computer and the Internet are typical examples. Both created a very wide variety of service industries that did not exist until their arrival. New ones are constantly being created on a daily basis.
Travel and tourism
These are service industries in their own right. However, both make aware of the services in the countries visited that may not be available in our own countries. If we like what we see, we may import those services into our own countries. Foods, music, entertainment are some of the typical examples.
Rising incomes and material living standard for some
As people’s incomes and living standards rise, they spend some of that income buying all kinds of services: concerts, keep fit, sports, health and beauty, entertainment, tourism, eating out and buying take-aways. The list is endless.
The love of pleasure and available leisure time
We live in a very pleasure-loving and materialistic age. With leisure time on time on their hands after work (those who are employed) people spend most of that time on pleasure pursuits, such as music and pop festivals, night clubs, eating and drinking, entertainment, night life, travel and tourism, visiting the theatre and cinemas, watching television on various channels.
Ownership of possessions that require professional cleaning and maintenance
Clothes that require dry cleaning and laundry, motor vehicles, homes, a wide variety of gadgets, etc.
Marketing and trade
The function of marketing is not only supplying us with things that we need or want. It is also in the business of making us want new products and services made by different suppliers. This is done through aggressive marketing: adverting, sales promotion, personal selling, etc.
The media
The media makes aware of services that are available in other parts of the world.
Globalisation
Our world is now a global market place on which services fro all over the world are traded. We do not have to travel to the supplying countries to source them. We can do so over the Internet from the comfort of our own homes or office.
What you need to start and run a service business
- A strong passion to work for yourself and be your own boss
- Entrepreneurial skills
- Your past experience, if any
- Your technical or professional qualification, if any
- Money with which to hire skilled workers
- Some capital, the amount depending on the type of service you wish to start and the scale of your operations
- Buy an existing service business, a franchise or join a Network Marketing service.
Not all services call for technical or professional skills. Wholesaling and retailing being typical examples. If any, some of the skills can be easily acquired in a very short space of time at very little cost. For example cleaning, delivery.
It is generally cheaper to start a service business in which you provide a personal technical or professional service. For example cleaning and maintenance, accountancy, book-keeping and payroll service, business consultancy, I T services, extra tuition, etc.
In those type of services, your main capital is your expertise and a few tools, determined by what you will be doing.
Some of these services can be easily operated from home or from a van.