Local: Great Idea, Just Expensive and Twitter Is Good Enough
August 10, 2013
At lunch a couple of days ago, one of the goslings was looking at his iPhone every few seconds. I asked, “Wazzup?”
The answer was, “I am checking on the road closings near the office.”
Yep, hyper local news right here in Harrod’s Creek. Twitter does a good enough job of pumping out local information to those who want to know “wazzup”?
I thought about this conversation when I read “Armstrong Confirms Hundreds of Layoffs at Patch, 400 Sites Shuttered or Partnered Off, and a New CEO.” My recollection is that a former Googler (born baby Jack Welches I assume) cooked up the idea for a series of sites which covered “local” news. Then, if memory serves, the Xoogler sold the company he owned to Time Warner. To make a long story short, the Xoogler became the president of AOL, which owned the Xoogler’s local news operation. I may have the details fuzzy, but Wikipedia has a useful write up which provides plenty of details.
Was Patch a bad idea? No. It was a great idea to sell the company to AOL. Yes, it was a bad idea because local news is expensive to set up, operate, maintain, and make exciting to advertisers. Advertisers can use cheap methods to reach eyeballs of local customers. I get message stuffed in my mailbox and fat envelopes with coupons explaining two-for-one Indian meals and $4.99 burrito specials. So for AOL and the founder of Patch, the result is that Big Daddy had to drop the hammer on hundreds of Baby Patchers.
Fascinating.
Will Yahoo’s Xoogler in charge experience similar management challenges? I read a story which may not be spot on, but it opened a window on former Googlers’ management capabilities. Navigate to “AOL’s CEO Just Fired Somebody for Pulling Out a Camera in a Meeting About Layoffs.” The article reports that on a conference call, Big Daddy Patch fired a person for taking out a camera type device. In the midst of a live call, Big Daddy Patch allegedly said, “”Abel, put that camera down. You’re fired. Out.” Interesting.
My hunch is that some folks equate getting hired at Google with Jack Welch type business acumen. Time will provide the quarter-by-quarter details.
In the meantime, check Twitter for job leads and local information. I would not use AOL or Yahoo search for that matter to seek new employment opportunities. Craigslist does that side of hyperlocal information I believe. Oh, Craigslist is for the most part free.
Stephen E Arnold, August 10, 2013
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