Connectivity, Reading/Writing, and the Cyber Age :: Technology Technological Essays

Network, Reading/Writing, and the Cyber Age I own a wireless. What's more, a work station. Furthermore, I haul this old PC around to all the coffeehouses and bars in whose commotion I attempt to overwhelm the mean little voices of writerly nervousness so I can simply complete my screwing schoolwork. At work I utilize a touch screen requesting framework to get my beverages from the bar and artichoke plunge from the kitchen. I check my horoscope on the web (just as those of the men I’m intrigued inâ€blushing with shameJ,) keep in contact with companions by means of email, and utilize my college’s online administrations to enroll for classes. I do a lot of my exploration for class by means of the electronic databases Eastern Michigan keeps up, I have a blog, I’ve attempted to get my verse distributed at online abstract magazines. With the assistance of an extremely persistent companion, I even documented my government charges online this year. The web and remote innovation make my life simpler to travel th rough rapidly. I am appreciative. Be that as it may, to some degree embarrassed. Similarly that I feel remorseful each time I drive the old contamination versatile a mile and a half to work, utilizing this fast data innovation wants to be tempted away from my standards by the draw of straightforwardness. I trust in gradualness. I love speed. It’s a trouble. I am by all account not the only individual battling with the contention between the speed present day life requests and that at which real life occurs. Women’s magazines are loaded with tips on sorting out the kitchen, the carpool, the art supplies, so additional time can be found for the significant things in lifeâ€hanging out with the children, investing energy with guardians, perhaps engaging in sexual relations with accomplices. Publicizing organizations pitch scads of items as life hacks, from dinners in-a-sack to squares of chemical that clean the can with each flush. Every one of my companions whine about not having sufficient opportunity to complete everything. My better half who is taking a shot at her PHD and Master’s degrees simultaneously doesn’t have sufficient opportunity to see her sweetheart and invest energy with her mom in the nursing home. My other dear sweetheart with two [fabulous] kids, a spouse [that’s out of this world,] a house, two vehicles, and two employments doesn’t possess enough energy for anything. The vast majority of my men companions don’t have sufficient opportunity to maintain their sources of income, deal with their bodies, support their ladyfriends in the way and still comprehend what they’re feeling from second to second.

Accounting for Income Tax-Free-Samples for Students-Myassignment

Questions: 1.You are required to prompt Tony on the best way to bring the gazebos and gazebo seats to represent personal duty purposes at 30 June 2017. 2.Discuss whether the extra parts comprise exchanging stock. How might your answer vary if the citizen just rented PCs to other people and utilized the extra parts to cure deserts in the rented PCs? Answers: Tonys principle wellspring of salary is from fix of gazebo just as from deals of new produced gazebos. He consequently expects his salary from the administration rendered on fix and that from deals continues. He is required to pronounce his pay simply in the wake of catching all the applicable costs included. Its in this manner essential to investigate pay against expenses and costs in order to find out whether Tonys salary meets tax collection limit according to Australian Tax Office gauges set up. By look of things number juggling examination should be done as such as to offer point by point reprieve - down of income age and separate expenses related as demonstrated as follows; The Total Manufacturing Cost Per Gazebo is = Work Cost = 70 Material Cost = 80 Industrial facility Cost =100 Complete Cost= 250 Made Gazebos Chairs Total Cost On 30th June=10*250=$2500 Sold 6 seats out of this 10 made make deals income of=6*500=$3000 2015/2016 buy was made of 5 second had Gazebos accordingly buy value=5*$5=$25 this equivalent worth is the thing that remains as the potential shutting stock as at June 2016. seats were bought at cost =3*$10=$30 as at June 2017 Accepting all the 8 seats were sold=$20*8=$160 Substitution cost of the 8 chairs=$15*8=$120 From the above examination we have to think of pay explanation after net cost set off in order to characterize Tonys available pay. All the expense of deals things just as their worth fits the bill for charge deductible approaches since the income created result from their expenses. Cost Of Sales=Opening Stock+Purchases-Closing Stock Year 2016 COS For the 5 second hand gazebos=0+$25-$25=0 Year 2017 COS=$25(Opening Stock+$30(Purchases)- $35(Closing Stock )=$20 $35(Closing Stock Valuation )=1 seat from the 5 purchased second hand=1*$5=$5 =3 seats purchased at year end=3*$10=$30 Tonys Statement Of Income For The Year End June 2017 Deals income of the six seats cold 6*500=$3000 Deals income for the four fixed gazebo =$78 Less Assembling cost of the 6 seats sold=$250*6=$1500 Cost of deals of the fixed seats =$20 Substitution Cost Of 8 Chairs=$15*8 =$120 Less Total Cost (=$1640) Net Profit before Tax $1438 From the salary explanation above we are presently sure that Tonys business of selling the either recently made or fixed Gazebos shapes some portion of his wellspring of pay. These gazebos in this way shapes some portion of Tonys exchanging stock since they are believed to be produced or obtained with the end goal of the selling. Sec 28 of the Income Tax Assessment Act requires a substance to represent exchanging stocks through stock taking in order to decide shutting stock adjusts within reach as at start and close of the year. It is regarded that a dealer available salary is found out through stock valuation all the more so while representing cost of deals things. Tonys gazebos shutting adjusts in year 2015/2016 were uncovered for charge reason and apparently since there existed in opening equalization the net impact on cost of deals was near zero in this manner expanding the available salary in that year Cernius(2016.Pg 79). Anyway in year 2016/2017 we go over stocks for example opening, buys and shutting adjusts that are believed to decrease the available pay as appeared in the pay articulation. Stock within reach is generally as aftereffect of procurement made therefore as at the hour of making the buy GST Evans(2011.Pg 150) was charge on this buy along these lines continually leaving the merchant and purchase with the undertaking of representing this charge for charge purposes. Information charge results from buys made while yield result from deals made the two according to GST guidelines should contra one another and in this way considering charge discount or expense payable Spalding (2011.Pg 7). Exchanging stocks upon change make deals income hence a more noteworthy part of available salary. Regardless deals is made through exchanging products or administrations in this manner the duty man worry on the exchange stocks revelation is significant for GST purposes. After stock takes are done and correlation of past shutting adjusts is made the accompanying happens to the pay; if there is no change at all in stocks the available salary supposedly is steady, be that as it may if business begins as when the year parts of the bargains to remember the end balance for one assessable pay applies. At the point when stock increments obviously there exist assessable pay for charge reason though when it diminishes an admissible finding for charge designs is found out Michalski (2009.Pg 25). By applying this standard on shutting and opening adjusts we can reason that Tonys assessable pay is expanded by $25 in year 2015/2016 since the end balance is more than opening parity the equivalent applies in 2016/2017 however the figure increments to $35. Out of date quality of stock prompts loss of significant worth to Tonys stock valuation in this manner by him esteeming those exchange stock things at 1$ actually he will bring about stock misfortune premise or rather underestimating the stocks subsequently must be set off against the salary made in that prior year charge coercion along these lines treated as deductible passable for charge reason. On the other hand the valuation downwards is treated as deductible permissible for charge purposes Mullins (2004 Pg.10). At last Tony need to enroll for GST to guarantee charges he paid while buying the gazebos this ought to be utilized to set off yield charge. In spite of the fact that this GST on buys is claimable upon enlistment and upon buy there exist examples where you pay for stock you previously had nearby before enrollment. 2.Trade stocks are anything held to encourage all the tasks in business. The principle course of business for this citizen is overhauling and selling PCs along these lines whatever add to this course whether substantial or immaterial ought to be treated as exchange stocks. Overhauling of this PCs cannot be finished without the extra parts along these lines arranging the extra parts as exchange stocks Circler (2010.Pg 345) This extra parts since they are utilized to encourage tasks with monetary prize desire it fits the bill to be an exchange stock. In like manner since they remain on its own individual characteristics with no adjustment for recognizable purposes they meet all requirements to be exchange stock Malady (2012.Pg.156) .Finally since the extra parts are dispensable in nature upon move to clients in the wake of overhauling it qualifies it to be exchange stock. In spite of the way that the PCs are rented , the citizen is still observed to utilize the extra parts to support the things that had just created reward, from this in this way the end is that the extra parts are named exchange stocks .This is so on the grounds that they are utilized to render upkeep administration. Anyway the characterization is just material if the extra parts time frame is that of not exactly a year or a time of which for our situation a supposition of it being utilized for one year is applied. Save parts are hence ordered relying upon the time viewpoint whereby if its used to work a benefit for a span not exactly a year then it worth delegated exchange stock and the other way around. In like manner the grouping is made on the reason or sole utilization of the extra part whereby if its utilized for rendering any assistance like for our situation upkeep or for creation reason. References Spalding, A.D., 2011. Imprint to-showcase and the extending hole among money related and charge bookkeeping. Noguchi*, M., 2005. Cooperation among duty and bookkeeping work on: Accounting for stock-in-exchange. Bookkeeping, Business Financial History, 15(1), pp.1-34. Smile blatt, M. what's more, Keloharju, M., 2004. Duty misfortune exchanging and wash deals. Diary of Financial Economics, 71(1), pp.51-76. Evans, M., Peacock, and C., 2011. The GST Treatment of Financial Services in Australia. GST in Australia: Looking Forward from the First Decade, pp.133-160. Sharma, P. what's more, Gupta, T.C., Role of GST in stock administration. Schenk, A., Thuronyi, V. also, Cui, W., 2015. Worth included expense. Cambridge University Press. Carlon, S., Tran, A. what's more, Tran-Nam, B., 2013. How close are available salary and bookkeeping benefit? An observational investigation of enormous Australian organizations. Cernius, G., Birskyte, L. what's more, Balkevicius, A., 2016. Impact of Rules for Computing Corporate Income Tax on the Accuracy of Financial Statements of Lithuanian Companies. Logical Annals of Economics and Business, 63(1), pp.65-81. Kirchler, E. what's more, Wahl, I., 2010. Duty consistence stock TAX-I: Designing a stock for studies of expense consistence. Diary of Economic Psychology, 31(3), pp.331-346. Mullins, D.R. what's more, Wallin, B.A., 2004. Duty and use confinements: Introduction and diagram. Open Budgeting Finance, 24(4), pp.2-15. Mulyadi, M.S., Soepriyanto, G. what's more, Anwar, Y., 2012. IFRS selection and tax collection issue. Global Journal of Arts and Commerce, 1(7), pp.159-165. Michalski, G., 2009. Stock administration advancement as a major aspect of operational hazard the executives.

Dictionary Offers Poetic Terms For Unnamed Emotions Critical Linking, May 8, 2019

Dictionary Offers Poetic Terms For Unnamed Emotions Critical Linking, May 8, 2019 Sponsored by Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors by Sonali Dev, published by William Morrow Its important for us to see the myriad ways our common language fails to capture the complexity of reality, ordinary and otherwise. Ask any poet, writer, or language teacher to tell you about itâ€"most of the words we use are too abstract, too worn out, decayed, or rusty. Maybe it takes either a poet or a philosopher to not only notice the many problems with language, but to set about remedying them. Such are the qualities of the mind behind The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows, a project by graphic designer and filmmaker John Koenig. The blog, YouTube channel, and soon-to-be book from Simon Schuster has a simple premise: it identifies emotional states without names, and offers both a poetic term and a philosopher’s skill at precise definition. Whether these words actually enter the language almost seems beside the point, but so many of them seem badly needed, and perfectly crafted for their purpose. My favorite one is Vellichor: The strange wistfulness of used bookshops. Poet Sara Holbrook, who often writes humorous verse for kids, had some harsh words for the Texas Education Agency after she discovered she couldnt answer questions about poems on the its standardized tests â€" poems she herself wrote. In an essay for the Huffington Post, Holbrook wrote that she felt like such a dunce after she didnt know the answers to questions posed on the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) tests about her poems â€" A Real Case and Midnight â€" meant for seventh- and eighth-grade students. This would be funny if it didnt say so much about standardized tests. Now the author is back with an equally personal tale in The Bride Test. Here, her hero, Khai Diep, cousin to The Kiss Quotient’s Michael, is autistic â€" a young man who believes he has no feelings because of the stereotypes surrounding autism that have worn him down. Again, Hoang drew on her personal experiences and thoughts on the complicated emotionality of autism. “I would love for someone on the spectrum to read this book and to feel validated that they are emotional,” she tells EW. “That they are kind. That they have feelings.” Even more personally, Hoang turned to another member of her family, her mother, a Vietnamese refugee, to craft her heroine, Esme Tran, a young woman who agrees to an arranged marriage for the chance at a better life for her family and finds love in the process. Though the story is set in the present day, Hoang based Esme’s journey on her mother’s story and the wells of inner strength it takes to create a new life for yourself in a strange and often unwelcoming place. I absolutely love both of these books and is it too soon to deem Helen Hoang a national treasure?! Sign up to Today In Books to receive  daily news and miscellany from the world of books. Thank you for signing up! Keep an eye on your inbox.

11 Taboos in Chinese Culture

Every culture has its own taboos, and it is important to remain aware of them when traveling or encountering another culture to ensure you dont commit a social faux-pas. In Chinese culture, some of the most common taboos involve gift-giving, birthdays, and weddings. Numbers According to Chinese tradition, good things come in pairs. Therefore odd numbers are avoided for birthday celebrations and weddings. To avoid bad things happening in pairs, activities such as burials and gift-giving are not performed on even-numbered days. In Chinese, the  number four (å››, sà ¬) sounds like the word for death (æ ­ », sÇ ). For this reason, the number four is avoided—particularly on phone numbers, license plates, and addresses. For addresses that do contain fours, the rent is usually less and apartments on the fourth floor are typically rented by foreigners. Work Shopkeepers may opt not to read a book at work because book (æ› ¸, shÃ… «) sounds like lose (è ¼ ¸, shÃ… «). Shopkeepers who read may be afraid their businesses will suffer losses. When it comes to sweeping, shopkeepers are careful not to sweep toward the door, especially during the Chinese New Year, in case good fortune is swept out into the street. When eating a meal, never turn over fish when you are with a fisherman as the motion symbolizes a boat capsizing. Also, never offer a friend an umbrella because the word umbrella (傘, sÇŽn) sounds similar to æ• £ (sà  n, to break up) and the act is a sign that you will never see each other again. Food Young children should not eat chicken feet as it is believed that doing so will prevent them from writing well when they start school. They may also become prone to fighting like roosters. Leaving food on one’s plate—particularly grains of rice—is believed to result in marriage to a spouse with many pockmarks on his or her face. Not finishing a meal is also believed to incur the wrath of the thunder god. Another Chinese taboo relating to food is that chopsticks should not be left standing straight up in a bowl of rice. This act is said to bring bad luck to restaurant owners as chopsticks stuck in rice look similar to incense placed in urns. Gift-Giving Since good things are believed to come in pairs, gifts given in pairs (except sets of four) are best. When preparing the gift, do not wrap it in white as that color represents sorrow and poverty. Certain gifts are also seen as inauspicious. For example, never give a clock, watch, or pocket watch as a gift because to send a clock (é€ Ã© Ëœ,  sà ²ng zhÃ… ng) sounds like the funeral ritual (é€ Ã§ µâ€š,  sà ²ng zhÃ… ng). According to Chinese taboo, clocks symbolize that time is running out. There are many other such ominous  Chinese gifts to avoid. If you give an unlucky gift by accident, the receiver can make it right by giving you a coin which changes the gift to an item they have symbolically purchased. Holidays It is a Chinese taboo to share stories about death and dying and ghost stories during special occasions and holidays. Doing so is considered extremely unlucky. Chinese New Year There are many Chinese New Year taboos  to be wary of. On the first day of the Chinese New Year, inauspicious words cannot be spoken. For example, words such as break, spoil, die, gone, and poor should not be uttered. During the Chinese New Year, nothing should be broken. When eating fish, diners must be careful to not break any of the bones, and be extra careful not to break any plates. Also, nothing should be cut during Chinese New Year as that signifies one’s life could be cut short. Noodles should not be cut and haircuts should be avoided. In general, sharp objects like scissors and knives are avoided during Chinese New Year. All windows and doors in the home should be open on New Year’s Eve to send out the old year and welcome the New Year. All debts should be paid by Chinese New Year and nothing should be lent on New Year’s Day. When preparing paper dragons for the Chinese New Year, it is taboo for women who are menstruating, people in mourning, and babies to be near the dragons when the cloth is being pasted to the dragon’s body. Birthdays One long noodle is typically slurped on one’s birthday. But revelers beware—the noodle should not be bitten or cut as this is believed to shorten one’s life. Weddings In the three months leading up to a couple’s wedding, they should avoid going to a funeral or wake or visiting a woman who has just had a baby. If one of the couple’s parents passes away before the wedding, the wedding must be postponed for 100 days, as attending happy celebrations during mourning is considered disrespectful to the dead. If a roasted pig is given as part of the bride’s gift to the groom’s family, the tail and ears should not be broken. Doing so would mean the bride is not a virgin. Fifth Lunar Month The fifth lunar month is considered an unlucky month. It is a Chinese taboo to dry blankets in the sun and build houses during this time. Hungry Ghost Festival The Hungry Ghost Festival is held during the seventh lunar month. In order to avoid seeing ghosts, people should not go outside at night. Celebrations such as weddings are not held, fishermen do not launch new boats, and many people opt to postpone their trips during the Hungry Ghost Month. The souls of those who die by drowning are considered to be in the greatest turmoil, so some people refuse to go swimming during this time to lessen the chance of a run-in with wayward ghosts.

Parents Keep Child s Gender Secret By Jayme Poisson

In â€Å"Parents Keep Child’s Gender Secret,† Jayme Poisson describes how one family choses to raise their child genderless. They are also keeping the child’s sex a secret, although it is not clear if they are trying to allow the child to define its sex. Gender and sex are two different distinctions that are often mistakenly seen as the same thing. Society places gender expectations based on sex, so it’s easy to see why they are looked at as the same thing. It’s important to remember that gender represents a choice, while sex is determined before you are born. The option of choosing is important when considering the ethics of raising a child. It’s why I believe that it is ethical to allow a child to define their gender and unethical to allow a child to define their sex. There are three common arguments against allowing a child to define their gender. The first common argument is that the child will bullied and may not be mature enough to handle it. Unfortunately, children can be bullied for a number of reasons regardless of their gender. Parents do not allow bullying to affect other decisions and they should not allow bullying to interfere with who their child wants to be either. It is he one doing the bullying that has a problem, not their child. The second common argument against allowing a child to define their gender is that friends and family will disapprove. However, there is always someone who will disapprove of any decision you make. Voting, eating meat, sexualShow MoreRelatedGender Secrecy : Sex And Gender1244 Words   |  5 PagesAalap Pandya Valorie Ebert ENC1102-8:00 am 4 September, 2014 Poisson First Draft Gender Secrecy Sex and gender are commonly misconstrued to mean the same thing. Which causes stereotypes and expectations to be created on the idea that they are one. The stereotypes and expectations are as follows; boys should be dirty and aggressive who love action figures and the color blue, who have to grow up and have high status roles in society so they can be successful. Girls, on the other hand, should be delicateRead MoreParent Keep Child s Gender Secret Essay1445 Words   |  6 Pagesdetermines one’s gender and personal lifestyle. While girls are supposed to like ballet and wear pink, boys are supposed to play with trucks and like sports. What people like and what they do is determined by their gender, but most of this assumptions are based on one’s sex. The expectations that society has of how people are supposed to dress and act could be different if their sex was not something to worry about. For instance, Jayme Poisson in her essay â€Å"Parent Keep Child’s Gend er Secret† mentions aRead MoreGender Identity And Its Effect On The Way People1783 Words   |  8 Pagesothers. When it comes to sex and gender, these two words are used interchangeably, even though they are different. Sex is what a person is biologically born with, whereas Gender is how a person is seen in society, their roles, and their accepted behavior. Gender identity is a person’s inner sense of being male or female and a display of that. Jayme Poisson writes an article, â€Å"Parents Keep Child’s Gender Secret,† on two parents that decided to raise their newborn child genderless. The couple also allowsRead MoreGender And Male And Gender1689 Words   |  7 PagesThroughout today s society, almost every aspect of someone’s actions is based on whether or not he or she fits into the social norms that have been created. It is now clear that males are the dominant figures in our society. Norms in society do not just come randomly to one s life; t hey start since a child is born. When a child is born the first question asked by the parents, family, and friends is the gender of the child, whether it is a girl or a boy. In contrast, the terms sex and gender have always

Theo Georgiades Free Essays

Dramatic irony is a feature of many plays. It occurs when the development of the plot allows the audience to have more insight about what is happening than some of the characters themselves. Iago is the source of much of the dramatic irony in Othello, informing the audience of his intentions. We will write a custom essay sample on Theo Georgiades or any similar topic only for you Order Now Characters may also speak in a dramatically ironic way, saying something that points to events to come without understanding the significance of their words. The opening scene is laced with dramatic irony, all of which centres on Iago. Roderigo fails to see that a man who admits he is a self-serving conman – â€Å"I am not what I am† – might also be fooling him, and Brabantio is unaware of the aptness of his line â€Å"Thou art a villain†. Iago has exposed himself very early and we watch fascinated as he manipulates others. In Act I, Scene III, we almost admire Othello’s â€Å"free and open nature†, as Shakespeare states, but we are worried that Othello is gullible enough to be taken for a ride. His choice to place his wife in Iago’s care is frightening, although it shows his high opinions of him. We are given two menacing hints about the future progress of Othello’s marriage when the senators leave; Brabantio warns Othello against trusting Desdemona, while the first senator tells Othello to â€Å"use Desdemona well†. These lines are examples of dramatic irony; hints to the audience about the way the plot will develop. In Act III, Scene III, Othello is under pressure from the moment he enters. He is able to order his wife, although he seems nervous throughout his dialogue with her at the start of the scene. There is acknowledgment in his line â€Å"I will deny thee nothing†, as we are very well aware that this line is very true. We might feel that Othello is already on the threshold of disaster, even before Iago’s words get to him properly. As Desdemona leaves Othello says â€Å"Excellent wretch [†¦] come again† (see lines III.3.90-2). These lines suggest that Othello will be completely lost if his love is shattered. Note the two words in these lines that hint at the trouble to come: â€Å"perdition† and â€Å"chaos†. The audience will be aware of the dramatic irony of these lines. Also found in Act III; Scene IV is packed with dramatic irony. This sad scene focuses on Desdemona. Emilia’s purpose in this scene is to remark on what she sees and hears. She introduces the subject of Othello’s jealousy, enabling us to value just how much naive confidence Desdemona has in her husband. We quickly learn that we can rely on her judgement; Emilia accurately guesses that it is jealous thoughts which trouble Othello. Emilia is also intelligent in her description of jealousy; â€Å"It is a monster/Begot upon itself, born on itself†. Later on in the play we will see the excellence of these words. Shakespeare fills this scene with examples of alarming dramatic irony, for example Desdemona’s words at lines 25-9 and 30-1. In spite of the fact that she lies to her husband about the loss of the handkerchief, we are likely to feel much sympathy for Desdemona. She does not appreciate the danger she is in, signified by her words at line 30 and is alarmed by her husband’s description of the handkerchief and his repeated requests to see it. Shakespeare’s play Othello is a play where dramatic irony prevails practically everywhere. The audience is not just an observer, but a kind of judge one might say, having enough information to evaluate the significance of certain words stated by characters that are none the wiser; and can therefore sit back and enjoy the art in the villain’s skills aswell the excellence of Shakespeare at play. How to cite Theo Georgiades, Papers

SEO Basics for Small Businesses and Startups

If you have a startup or a small business, your search engine rankings can have a major impact on the company’s success. It takes some effort and strategy to play the SEO game and stay ahead of the competition, but you don’t necessarily need a big budget to get big results. Here are a few simple tips that can help keep your business on top of Google, Yahoo and Bing’s search results. 1. Focus on fresh, quality content The saying â€Å"content is king† has become a tired clichà ©, but there’s a lot of truth to it. Nothing is better for SEO than a steady stream of fresh, engaging, valuable content on your website. Think about it: the goal of any search engine is to provide the most relevant information for every search. When your website is regularly updated with new and useful content, that content is assumed to be more relevant by search engines. You end up with bonus points in the ranking game and better spots in the search results. 2. Build backlinks from authority websites In some ways, SEO is a lot like life: you can get ahead with good connections. While fresh and relevant content should be the cornerstone of your SEO strategy, link building is another essential tactic. It may seem tempting, but don’t take the shortcut of buying big batches of links. Search engines don’t favor these purchased links and you risk being penalized. Take the slow and steady approach by reaching out to relevant bloggers and organizations with an inquiry or press release. It may take some time and effort, but you’ll be rewarded with SEO-boosting backlinks from â€Å"authority† sites. People get most of their information about local businesses from online searches, so it’s important to send the right â€Å"signals† to search engines to get your business good visibility in your community. Adding local keywords to each of your pages is a good start, but it’s just the tip of the iceberg. You should also: Claim a page for your company on Google My Business. If you already have one, confirm that your contact information and business hours are correct. Include your business contact information on each page of your website. Ask customers to leave reviews. Customer reviews on sites like TripAdvisor and Yelp can make a big difference in your search ranking, so it’s worth the effort to reach out to your existing customers and encourage them to provide a review. 4. Harness the power of social media Social media has a powerful effect on your SEO. When your content is liked, shared, tweeted and commented on, the search engines take notice. This engagement signals that your content is relevant and important. As a result, you’ll receive a nice boost in your rankings. So, take the time to cultivate a strong social media presence on at least one platform: Facebook, Instagram and Twitter are all good choices, but some platforms are better suited for certain industries. 5. Go mobile More searches are done on mobile devices than on traditional laptop and desktop computers. Search engines have responded to this trend by rewarding mobile-friendly websites with better positions in search results. If you don’t have a user-friendly mobile presence, your ranking is likely to suffer and you may be driving away quite a few potential customers. Implementing a responsive web design can help ensure that your website is usable on a variety of mobile platforms. Relatedly, optimizing your images and making sure your fonts and buttons are easy to see on different devices is vital. These ideas represent just a few of the tactics small businesses and startups can employ to boost their rankings and dominate the competition. SEO success doesn’t happen overnight. But with a bit of patience and a strategic approach, you can improve your rankings regardless of the size of your budget.