The External Business Environment

The External Business Environment

Today, business has evolved into highly competitive industries who offer goods and/or services. Businesses are connected with society on all Political, Economical, Technological, and Socio-cultural levels. The Business environment has become chaotic as the world constantly changes and grows. The past decade has yielded advances in every field imaginable, and created a very dynamic, competitive free market in the U.S.

The Consumer Services Industry:

Business today is made up of two types of industries, goods and services. Services in general face an extremely competitive market. Services are often intangible, and difficult to place value on. The consumer service industry is directly related to the state of an economy. Consumers must have the available free income to obtain the services, and become loyal users of it. The consumer must be made to perceive that the option does in fact lie within his/her reach and such an option will in fact enrich life for the customer. Also, the consumer must be made to see that time must be made available in order to take advantage of the opportunity.

One of the most prevalent forms of competition in the consumer industry is differentiation. It's important to be an innovator and original to stay on top. The service industry relies heavily upon consumer turnout. This heavy reliance has led to the consumer dictating much of the decision making. A service business must always hold the consumer's considerations first hand, considering both time constraints and income.

There are various subgroups of this category, such as food and beverage, business, and even travel services offering all sorts of competition for consumer dollars. Competitors include hotels, restaurants, airlines, consulting firms and any other company willing to provide a service for compensation.

Transportation Industry:

The traveling industry as a whole has four main categories: Bus, Rail, Air, and Shipping/Cruise lines. The main considerations for consumers are income and convenience when deciding upon a traveling option. Destination is also a key factor, as well as the duration of their stay.

The potential customer first would decide if driving is an option to arriving to the destination. Driving can be cheaper depending on the destination of choice