Difference Between Business and Profession

Many people do not have a clear understanding of business and profession. They used to think that both terms were the same. However, they are not.

Key Takeaways

1. Business refers to commercial activity that involves the sale of goods or services in exchange for profit, while profession refers to an occupation that requires specialized education, training, and expertise.
2. Business is usually driven by market demand and competition, while ethical standards and professional norms drive the profession.
3. Business owners are entrepreneurs who take on financial risks to start and run a business, while professionals are usually licensed and regulated by professional bodies or associations.

Business vs Profession

The difference between Business and Profession is that business doesn’t require a person to have a specific qualification. On the other hand, the profession requires you to be skilled in your niche and have a certification in that. Business is generally concerned with the buying and then selling of articles. In a profession, you are required to provide services through your skills.

The main objective of a business is to earn a profit. Every person has their tactics to make a considerable amount of profit in the industry.

In the profession, one aims to provide top-notch services to the company. They have to be experts in that particular field in order to do so.

As business is concerned with buying and selling, it doesn’t require any certificate or a degree from a person. What all matters is that if you can increase the profits, the business is making.

However, the profession requires you to be qualified in your field, as you will be providing services on the basis of your qualifications.

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Comparison Table

Parameter of Comparison	Business	Profession
Definition	It is a type of economic activity in which a person produces and sells articles to make profits.	A profession is concerned with providing services that require a person to have a specific qualification in a particular niche in order to successfully do that.
Purpose	The main goal here is to make money.	In the profession, the purpose is to provide services.
Qualification	No qualification is required. You are just required to produce, buy, and sell items to earn.	Qualification is required. You must have expertise in the area you are providing your services.
Involvement of risk	The risk factor is quite high here.	There is almost no risk factor.
Advertisement	Businesses use advertisements to boost their sales.	Advertisement isn’t allowed because of the professional code of conduct.

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What is Business?

Business is an economic activity in which a person earns a profit by making or buying and selling goods and articles to customers.

The primary purpose of it is to make a profit. A business doesn’t mean that it is a company or organization. It might include anyone from a street hawker to a shoe manufacturer.

The main reason people consider doing business is to make money. However, it is pretty essential to know the needs of customers and act accordingly to spike your sales up.

In business, you are responsible for providing goods and services to your customers. One must pay attention to the quality of their products. You can build a good relationship with your customers in this manner.

To know how efficient a business is, you can always consider checking its profit. Profit lets you see if you are doing any good or not. Business involves a lot of risk-taking.

There is almost no way to anticipate things in business. Sometimes, things might work as you want them to, and sometimes they won’t.

 

What is Profession?

A profession is an economic activity that requires a person to be highly skilled in any one particular area to be able to provide top-notch services to the public.

Professionals get their expertise from prolonged training in which they are made skilled to perform a particular set of tasks.

It requires a lot of formal learning and experience on the job to become competent in one specific niche.

Some examples of professionals are doctors, engineers, pilots, architects, etc. One can be called a professional only after getting a certification from their respective college or university.

Professionals are required to work under some guidelines defined by their professional bodies. The purpose of a profession is to provide its services to the people.

In return, professionals charge some amount of fee as their earnings. Unlike any business, one cannot start practising a profession overnight.

It requires one to be a member of the respective professional body, which provides them with a certification that ensures they can provide their services to the public.

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Main Differences Between Business and Profession

1. A business is a kind of economic activity in which profit is earned by making, buying, and selling certain goods to customers.
   However, in the profession, one needs to be highly skilled and specialized in a particular field to provide services to the public.
2. The primary purpose of business is to make money. Understanding the needs of your customers and acting accordingly will spike sales.
   In the profession, the goal is to provide services for which a professional charges compensation, i.e., some fee.
3. A business can be established anytime. All it requires is action from the entrepreneur. However, a profession works only if you are a member of a particular professional body and possess the certificate to practice your expertise.
4. Anyone is free to start a business. There are no particular educational criteria to be eligible for it.
   However, in a profession, you must undergo prolonged training before providing your services.
5. Advertisements can be done by a business to increase its sales. In a profession, you can’t advertise because of the professional code of conduct.

References

1. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED478127
2. https://heinonline.org/hol-cgi-bin/get_pdf.cgi?handle=hein.journals/umem18&section=12