A balance sheet shows what a company owns, what it owes, and how much is left for shareholders. It is one of the three main financial statements investors use to understand a business. The Balance Sheet Formula Assets = Liabilities + Shareholders' Equity Assets are what the company owns (cash, buildings, inventory) Liabilities are what the company owes (loans, unpaid bills) Equity is the value left for shareholders after debts are paid Example Here is a simple balance sheet for a company: Assets: 5 million dollars Liabilities: 3 million dollars Shareholders' Equity: 2 million dollars This tells us that the company has 5 million in total assets, owes 3 million, and has 2 million in value left over for shareholders. Why It Matters Looking at the balance sheet helps you answer questions like: Does the company have too much debt? Is it growing its assets over time? Does it have enough cash to handle short-term problems? A company with strong assets, low debt, and solid equity is usually in better shape than one with heavy borrowing and little value left for shareholders. Key Takeaways The balance sheet shows a company’s financial health at a point in time Assets minus liabilities equals shareholder equity Look for companies with more assets than debts Use it alongside other statements to make better investing decisions
When it comes to SEO, there isn't a magic formula to instantly send your site off to the #1 search result on Google. But there are some basic principles you should follow for a wonderful starting point. Here are the top 5 SEO practices to start with: #1 Write for people, not for search engines Always write original, interesting, high quality site content that's error free and relevant to your site. Search engines like Google can easily detect content that is duplicated from elsewhere online, that contains grammatical errors, or that is stuffed with keywords. #2 Add a blog to your site and use rich media To engage your site visitors and blog readers, create posts that include non-textual media like photos, videos, or original visualizations (infographics). Having that extra content (especially if it's captivating) will increase the time users spend on your site as well as the likelihood they will share your site with their own community. #3 Offer a positive user experience throughout your site Google will know if you're using your site to aggressively advertise your service, or if you're being too pushy. Always aim to offer site visitors a pleasant experience on your site. That means clear content, support when needed, and always an option to go back. #4 Create a network of internal links (but don't overdo it) Add links between different pages of your site and your blog, but try to follow a process that feels organic rather than heavy linking meant just for search engine crawlers. Link between pages that make sense, for example, on your services page, link a certain industry specific term, and link it to a blog post you wrote about it, that gives more information on that term. #5 Always check your site's Core Web Vitals Core Web Vitals are a standard site performance standard initially created by Google. The report shows site owners how their site pages perform 'for real,' how long it takes for site visitors to load site pages, and it offers ways to fix issues, if there are any.