business Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or Trade, buying and selling Product (business), products (such as goods and Service (economics), services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for ...

commerce Commerce is the organized Complex system, system of activities, functions, procedures and institutions that directly or indirectly contribute to the smooth, unhindered large-scale exchange (distribution through Financial transaction, transactiona ...

, and

economics Economics () is a behavioral science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interac ...

, a client is a person who receives advice or services from a

professional A professional is a member of a profession or any person who work (human activity), works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the partic ...

, such as a lawyer or a

health care provider A health care provider is an individual health professional or a health facility organization licensed to provide health care diagnosis and treatment services including medication, surgery and medical devices. Health care providers often rece ...

. Clients differ from ''

customers In sales, commerce, and economics, a customer (sometimes known as a client, buyer, or purchaser) is the recipient of a good, service, product, or an idea, obtained from a seller, vendor, or supplier via a financial transaction or an e ...

'' in that customers are thought of as "one-time buyers" while clients can be seen as "long-term recipients", and customers buy

goods In economics, goods are anything that is good, usually in the sense that it provides welfare or utility to someone. Alan V. Deardorff, 2006. ''Terms Of Trade: Glossary of International Economics'', World Scientific. Online version: Deardorffs ...

as well as services.

Etymology

The term ''client'' is derived from Latin ''clientem'' or ''clinare'' meaning "to incline" or "to bend", the same root as many other similar words such as ''

climate Climate is the long-term weather pattern in a region, typically averaged over 30 years. More rigorously, it is the mean and variability of meteorological variables over a time spanning from months to millions of years. Some of the meteoro ...

'' and ''incline''.

By field

Health and social care

Clients of health care providers are generally called '' patients'', though it is not uncommon for therapists to use the word ''client''. In a social care context, recipients of services are often referred to as "service users". Therapeutic relationships are subject to requirements of confidentiality, meaning that therapists are not to disclose information shared by their clients during sessions, and to those not involved in the session. However, there are a number of exceptions in which a therapist can and must "break" the confidentiality, such as when the information suggests that the client poses an immediate threat to themselves or to others.

Law

Lawyers and attorneys also have clients, although the UK's Solicitors Regulation Authority refers to those who use legal services as "customers". An important aspect of a lawyer's job is developing and managing relationships with clients or, if the lawyer works for a government agency or corporation, the client's employees. Lawyers give legal advice to their clients as part of the legal process.

References

Business Supply chain management {{Business-stub