The business services sector includes any company whose primary offering involves them solving the need of another business.
When discussing this sector, the term B2B is often used. That simply means that the main customers and clients of businesses within are other businesses. It is short for ‘business to business’, which is the primary sales funnel that businesses in this sector work within.
It is a business that has always had a good hold in Australia and it continues to strive even today. This is shown by the facts and figures associated with this sector.
For instance, according to market research done by IBISWorld, the market size, measured by revenue, of the Professional Services industry in Australia is $258.8bn in 2022.
That is a huge percentage of the overall GDP, which demonstrates this industry’s importance to the overall economy.
This sector includes the likes of legal services, employment services, management consulting, contact centers, and advertising services, to name just a few.
More and more franchises are using innovation and technology to find new niches within this sector. Franchise Direct listings demonstrate this, with this page hosting a huge range of businesses within this sector.
In the past we have ill find online marketing firms, to networking and referral groups.
Considering the large amount of revenue this industry earns, it is unsurprising that is also one of the country’s top employers.
The Australian Financial Review has revealed that the percentage of people employed in business services over the past 50 years has grown from about 10 percent to 20 percent of the workforce in Australia.
This growth represents a huge opportunity for businesses. One of the reasons for such growth is that organisations can be specialised in their given area, with little expertise in other areas.
Therefore, those businesses have to employ a professional services organisation to complete the tasks it can’t.
An example of this would be an accounting firm that is excellent at the work they do. However, they may need to employ a web developing franchise to create their website, or a marketing franchise to ensure that the public know about their business.
Unsurprisingly, given all that we have already stated, there are several excellent franchise opportunities within this sector. And the good news is that a large number of these franchises are making excellent profits.
More and more entrepreneurs are looking towards business services as a potential area to start their next venture. It’s a wide-ranging sector, with a little something to suit virtually all investment levels.
If you are considering investing in a business services franchise opportunity, you may be asking yourself what skills you need to succeed.
Of course, with such a diverse sector, that will change from business to business. However, the Australian Industry and Skills Committee has stated the following as the skills that will be useful for people entering this industry.
Broad digital competence.
This is especially true if you are considering investing in an app, or web, developing franchise. However, virtually all businesses in this area do require some digital competence.
Over 60 percent of small and medium professional services companies consider their approach to technological change to be of the utmost importance. Therefore, digital literacy is clearly an important area in this industry.
Critical thinking, problem solving and strong interpersonal skills.
Interpersonal skills are especially important. That is because you are going to be dealing with people in similar positions to what you are in. They are business owners, and they are trying to minimise their costs, while you are trying to make a sale. Therefore, negotiating skills are also of the utmost importance.
Emotional intelligence skills
As we said previously, you will be dealing with business owners if you invest in an industry in this sector. Therefore, it is important to demonstrate emotional intelligence when communicating. Owning a business is a rewarding process, but it can also have its stresses. If you can remove some of those stresses for other business owners, then you may be onto a successful formula.
Creative intelligence.
Like all business areas, you have to have problem solving skills. You will be providing the solution to the needs of other businesses, and these will usually be solutions they can’t provide for themselves. Therefore, an ability to think on your feet and problem solve is essential.
When looking at future opportunity for growth for this sector, IBISWorld points towards businesses that provide services for the construction sector. It states the following: “Private non-residential construction projects, such as commercial buildings, mining sites and infrastructure developments, often require a range of professional services, particularly engineering consulting and architectural services.
“As a result, growth in capital expenditure on these projects generally results in greater demand for professional services, representing an opportunity for the subdivision.”
However, it should also be noted that virtually all businesses these days also require websites, marketing, and a host of other online and digital tools.
IBISWorld also state that this is a sector that has seen plenty of success over the past number of years.
They added: “The market size of the Professional Services industry in Australia has grown 3.8% per year on average between 2017 and 2022.”
Part of the reason for that growth was the sector’s ability to adapt and remain resilient during tough times.
A report from Xero emphasised that. It discussed the strength of the professional services sector and examined how this sector was able to show resilience post Covid-19. That is because it is an industry where adapting to hybrid working is often less of an issue than it is in other industries.
When examining the 2021 Australian job market, the report read: “The best performing sectors for jobs were those that could most easily continue working from home such as… professional services”.
Therefore, this is an industry that has shown that it is resilient, full of opportunity, and dynamic in the face of a changing world.