
A Week After Google Changes Algo, Mahalo Fires 10% of Staff - moses1400
http://www.centernetworks.com/mahalo-reduces-headcount-google-algo-change
======
jasonmcalacanis
1\. We're working with the folks impacted to place them at whatever company
they would like to join. I'm personally reaching out to folks who might want
these fine people. They will all wind up on their feet and be great additions
to the vibrant startup scene in Los Angeles.

2\. Mahalo is doing amazing videos with experts, but our (text) articles were
created by passionate writers who are not necessarily experts. Google want's
experts, so we're doubling down and getting experts to help build curriculums
and lesson plans for our videos. I'm 100% certain that will solve the problem.

3\. You can think of us as a free version of Lynda.com for everything. Or a
version of Kahn Academy for everything.

Imagine tens of thousands of these type of pages and videos being made a year:
[http://www.mahalo.com/learn-adobe-photoshop-adjustments-
pane...](http://www.mahalo.com/learn-adobe-photoshop-adjustments-panel/)

We're going to teach folks every major piece of software, every recipe of
note, how to change their oil and how to play any song on guitar or piano.
<http://www.youtube.com/howtoplayguitar2>

Video is the future, and we're going to be the largest creator of educational
videos this year.

It sucks that we got hit so hard, but we will come back stronger. The 95
members of the team that are still with us are more committed than ever to the
mission.

Yes, it really sucked to get off stage after 47 amazing LAUNCH companies had
such amazing launches on stage. I got told on my way to the after party. We
struggled over these decisions all weekend with the leadership team.

At the end of the day entrepreneurship is about kicking ass and getting your
ass kicked. I've been through this many times, but I would be lying if I said
it didn't impact me. It does.

This is the first time I had such a big high followed by such a low, low.

OK, time to change a diaper and give a bottle. No rest for the weary.

Back to work.

~~~
rimantas

      > Video is the future, and we're going to be the largest
      > creator of educational videos this year.
    

Oh no. I cannot wait for the video be the past. It may be the best way to
teach some things (mainly involving physical activities or physical
manipulation of some sort), but for programming topics it most often just
waste of time and bandwidth. Why would I want to spend a minute watching
someone to type a line of code with all mistypes and corrections, when I can
glance it in a second? Why would I want to fiddle with video controls to get
replay of particular section when I can reread it much faster whenever I want?

Seriously, I am starting to see this tendency to do anything in video as some
sort of DRM scheme for content sites. I recently unsubscribed from
thinkvitamin.com because they started to push everything to video (with
annoying intro at the start of each video).

I did check your guitar lessons… Sorry guys, but with "amazing videos" you
have you will never ever beat this guy: <http://justinguitar.com/> (check out
his beginners course or intermediate method;
<http://www.youtube.com/user/JustinSandercoe> ) — take a look if just to see
how expert _teaching_ looks like.

I will chose the best over the largest every time.

~~~
JonnieCache
_> Why would I want to spend a minute watching someone to type a line of code
with all mistypes and corrections, when I can glance it in a second?_

A lot of people _do_ want this. A good screencast shows not only the code, but
the thought process that goes into writing the code.

People have different cognitive styles and learn in very different ways. I
thought this was common knowledge by now.

~~~
alexfarran
It's common knowledge, but its essentially a myth.

[http://www.changemag.org/Archives/Back%20Issues/September-
Oc...](http://www.changemag.org/Archives/Back%20Issues/September-
October%202010/the-myth-of-learning-full.html)

~~~
JonnieCache
While the specific claims made by this article are true, they do not change
the fact that most educated, especially self educated people have experienced
situations where they have repeatedly gained much more knowledge much faster
from one particular type of learning experience than they have from others,
and that there is widely differing opinion on which type is best.

Now, while this obviously does not vindicate the claims of the people who
assert that learning styles _must_ be embodied in the neurology of the
learner, it does show that _something is going on,_ and it would be to the
benefit of both learners and teachers to find out more about it.

------
xutopia
"Free advice for entitled Gen Y trophy kids: if you spend 12 months at a
company over and over you look like a flake."

<http://twitter.com/#!/Jason/status/12621363849>

Or maybe it makes you look like someone who thinks they have better
opportunities elsewhere.

~~~
suprgeek
Free Advice for opinionated Entrepreneurs - when you have the right to fire
anyone at any time; evaluate the person you are hiring on merit and "fit" for
the role. Not based on number of past stints or time spent at each company;
but mostly do not come off looking like huge hypocrites.

~~~
danteembermage
I think this glosses over an important point. Hiring or firing is expensive in
opportunity cost (e.g. project delays, disruption to the work environment,
morale) and so it makes sense to internalize that cost in a hiring decision.
Suppose Person A will provide value Y per year, cost X per year, and turn over
in one year costing Z. Person B produces value Y - K, costs X, but will stay
for 3. If K < (Z - Z/3) all else equal you'd choose person B. Building a brand
that you jump ship for better jobs ought to cost you something, even if that
something is much less than the salary you gain not being a gold-watch girl.

------
S_A_P
Could someone tell me more about this Jason Calacanis fellow. He seems to be a
very polarizing figure on this site. Really all I know is that he seemed to
have a falling out with Michael Arrington and alot of articles seem to mention
him in a slightly negative light.

Is there some reason for this, and no I'm not trying to troll.

~~~
arnorhs
You should check out some of his shows on <http://thisweekin.com/thisweekin-
startups/> \- you can get a sense of who he is from watching a few.

The general consensus on HN is that he doesn't treat people well or is somehow
not very "honest".

Personally, I'm a big fan. I watch every episode and I generally agree with
most of what he says.

~~~
rokhayakebe
I agree. He just seems brutally honest, and that gets him in trouble. But hate
him or love him, the guy does a great job with TWIST. I do not use Mahalo, so
I cannot speak for it.

~~~
arnorhs
Same here. I don't even remember ending up on a Mahalo search results page,
come to think of it.

~~~
rhizome
Like you, I know Mahalo mostly from knowing _about_ it and skipping past their
entries in Google results, but I wouldn't doubt that these kinds of sites
enjoy a lot of clicks from people who just don't know English or the Internet
very well. Understandable words are understandable words.

The problems people have with Mahalo and their ilk are unimportant to 90% of
the people on the Internet. Many are perfectly comfortable typing "how to
cross street?" into google or their isp homepage and clicking the top link.
Boom: business model.

------
dpcan
I find this interesting because I have never done a Google search that led me
to a Mahalo site. I don't even recall seeing them come up in a search result
for anything honestly.

Having heard about Mahalo through Podcasts and such, I have been to the site a
few times to find some things, but usually ended up back at Google.

However, now learning of the How-To style videos coming to the site in droves,
I'm definitely interested again.

So, this bad press and their bad fortune may lead to new visitors, such as
myself. Probably not in the waves that Google brought, but it's "press" none-
the-less.

------
robryan
I personally have never found any useful content at Mahalo, sure the site
looks a bit better now but the previous version was trash. Imagine how many
investing in high quality content lost traffic to the older spam filled, next
to no content Mahalo.

~~~
mikecarlucci
For all the press Mahalo gets I've never seen a Mahalo page show up in the
first page or two of Google results. Maybe I'm not looking for the right
stuff, but ehow, wikihow etc. all would show up before adding them to Personal
Blocklist.

------
aresant
I feel for the cut staff and Mahalo has plenty of dough in the bank but
reminds me of Jason's article "What to do if your startup is about fail (or
"Don't Stop Believing")"

[http://calacanis.com/2009/02/27/what-to-do-if-your-
startup-i...](http://calacanis.com/2009/02/27/what-to-do-if-your-startup-is-
about-fail-or-dont-stop-believing/)

Applicable lesson I learned the hard way - better to make cuts early in the
face of a serious shift vs. burn cash, see morale dip, etc.

~~~
erickhill
Any time you go through a round of layoffs the morale is going to dip amongst
the survivors for a little while. This is particularly acute when the company
is small, and those being let go are perceived to have added value (usually
culturally more than direct ROI). It can slowly chip away at the soul of a
place.

Crunchbase shows Mahalo at 40 employees pre-cut.

------
marcamillion
The messed up thing about this is, that 10% of the staff have 'slaved' for
however long they have been there.

All for naught.

Maybe they can still get a referral from Jason, but given that I don't think
that pays the bills...hopefully it can help them land on their feet.

~~~
forensic
"slaved".. were they not compensated?

~~~
marcamillion
Perhaps, but as far as I understand it...they are compensated at a pittance
with the hope that after 3 - 5 years they can leave with a nice payout and
move on to 'bigger' and better.

I guess my point is, this is why you should be careful who you commit to slave
for (e.g. a boss that expressly says that they expect you to work like a
slave) because at the end of the day - if the business ever turns down you are
just a number.

It's unfair to ask salaried employees to give the same as the founder, because
the founders won't be first in line to be cut when revenues turn down.

~~~
robryan
What do you suggest then? They carry the employees even though it is no longer
economically viable?

~~~
marcamillion
Not in the least. I think Jason did the fiscally prudent thing. He has a
fiduciary responsibility to his shareholders to respond in the way he did.
Very tough call, but no doubt the necessary call to make, if he wants to turn
Mahalo into a going concern.

I suggest that he doesn't go around bragging about how he only wants 'winners'
and he expects everybody to give 80 hour weeks and all that non-sense. Giving
someone free food, and a 'free chef', doesn't make up for demanding 80-hour
weeks no matter what they tell you.

I think he should just shut up, and set an example through deeds - because at
the end of the day, 10% of the staff can (and should) get cut when revenue
tanks. Acting like it won't happen and they will have a big payday if the
company gets bought or goes public is disingenuous at best, and
deceitful/fraudulent at worst.

That being said, I don't think he should discourage people from working that
long - on the occasion when they have a deadline to hit or something.

But just be more responsible with the rhetoric, is all I am saying. These are
people with families that are likely depending on their livelihood.

~~~
throwit3211
And a lot of them are probably Gen Y people who, had this been a different
company, upon applying to Mahalo would be discriminated against. Left their
job in a year? Oh they were laid off? Well, in Calacanis' book they were the
laziest, most selfish 10% of employees - they deserved it!

Hopefully too many other businesses don't buy into that nonsense.

------
mrtron
Didn't they recently pivot and switch over from a lot of written articles to
videos?

It would make sense to get rid of some writers and get some video folks quick.
With their 40 employees, 4 being let go seems hardly a news-worthy event. It
seems even more of a stretch positioning this as google algorithm driven.

~~~
ivankirigin
Read the article, which is about that shift. They are going to focus on how-to
video.

------
annajohnson
I like Jason Calacanis. He's done a wonderful job with TWIST, the This Week In
network, the Open Angel Forum and the Launch conference. I find him to be very
funny and entertaining, passionate about entrepreneurship, tough-minded and
determined to succeed, forthright and honest about his opinions, and someone
who isn't afraid to make hard decisions. I do wonder about the future of
Mahalo, though. Unlike some of Jason's other ventures, it seems as if Mahalo -
now version 4.0 - has struggled to obtain a unique and strong identity, let
alone sufficient market traction, so far. If it can be the best how-to video
site on the Internet, great, but given Google's recent stance on how-to
content sites (i.e. the 'farmer' algorithmic change), not to mention all the
other companies vying to be the best how-to video site on the Internet, the
company certainly has its work cut out for it. On the other hand, these are
precisely the circumstances that sort out the real entrepreneurs from the
wannabes and from Jason's comments above... I wouldn't count him or the Mahalo
team out.

------
JeremyHerrman
Jason said in the closing remarks of LAUNCH something to the effect of "I am
so happy, let's go to the W and get drunk." After arriving at the W, I checked
my phone and saw the article on Google's blog - some timing! I feel for him
and all of the people that lost their jobs.

------
michaelpinto
I've know Jason since the web 1.0 era in silicon alley — he's always give to
his larger community (and still does with his podcast) and the one thing that
Jason really taught me: If you fail, dust yourself off and startup again. Mark
my words that Jason will come back. I think this is a lesson that everyone in
business should learn...

------
paolomaffei
"What’s really interesting to me is that I remember when Mahalo first
launched, Jason told me numerous times he didn’t care about Google because he
was going to build loyal users who would just come directly to Mahalo"

Really?

------
grammaton
Now, mind you, this is the same Calcanis who publicly bitched about how
employees lack loyalty and job-hop. I wonder why?

Mmmmm, savor the delicious irony.

------
justinchen
I think this only the beginning of the bad news due to this algo change. There
are many legitimate businesses that have been seriously impacted by traffic
drops and we'll probably see many more layoffs and budget cuts.

~~~
YooLi
Out of curiosity, can you name some of the legitimate businesses that were
affected? I thought the algo only targeted content farms and sites that
regurgitated other peoples content.

~~~
WillyF
Mine is one. Google traffic is down 30%, and that significantly affects my
revenue.

<http://www.onedayonejob.com/>

~~~
InfinityX0
You need to increase the # of links you have from the homepage - I would
suggest getting to the 100 internal link point by finding more ways to tag
your jobs you have under "See All 1206 Entry Level Employers", which I imagine
is driving most of your search traffic.

Divide that by category types and link from the sidebar - this will pass
linkjuice more efficiently and improve your traffic.

~~~
WillyF
That's a really good suggestion. I mostly use the tag pages to flow linkjuice
throughout the site, and it seems to work pretty well. I'll think more about
how I can improve my site architecture. But I was doing pretty well until
Thursday.

The really interesting thing is that <http://www.onedayoneinternship.com/> has
seen no change in traffic. Its architecture is nearly identical, and much of
the content is shared across both sites (because I built the sites for humans,
not search engines). There's a decent chance that this is causing the problem,
but I can't understand why ODOJ would get hit instead of ODOI. Even content
that isn't partially duplicated on ODOI is getting hit, so it's either a
domain level filter/penalty based on duplicate content, or it's not the issue.

Right now I'm thinking a lot about how to fix whatever Google doesn't like,
but it's really hard when you can't be sure. I can't really afford to do
significant testing (and you can't actually run a good experiment with a real
site). For now I'm going to keep investigating, and work on building links.
That's always a good time investment.

~~~
T-hawk
> but I can't understand why ODOJ would get hit instead of ODOI.

Wild guess: "job" is a highly competitive keyword subject to lots of scammy
black hats ("work from home for $$$!!!"), while "internship" is much more
clear of the scum?

------
bhavin
Ironically, I was watching this video recently when Calacanis was talking
about "How to kill Google".

<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OTe15DEWp30>

------
thasmin
Maybe this was the excuse for Mahalo to fire the 10% of its workers that were
the least productive. The bottom 10% may have even been hurting the company.

~~~
MikeCapone
Maybe, but I get the sense that the company's problems aren't primarily about
productivity.

------
Ben_Dean
Someone get this cat a dictionary so he can look up "decimate", a better word
for what happened than removing "a handful" of staff.

------
tmachinecharmer
This is "Algorithm Age". Damn! They are powerful!

------
jacques_chester
Well you can't fault them for dithering, can you?

------
haploid
Am I the only one who doesn't understand this at all?

As far as I can tell, Mahalo.com is a video site. Why on earth would google
going after content farms affect a video site in any way?

To me, this headline makes about as much sense as "Microsoft changes Windows 7
pricing, pork belly futures skyrocket." Am I missing something?

------
js4all
After weeks of criticism on Google's results being spam'ed, it was clear that
Google would react on this. The algorithm change was foreseeable.

On the other side this shows the monopolistic power of Google and how they can
hurt individual companies like they want.

For us as search engine users, it is time to support other search engines, for
instance DuckDuckGo.

~~~
egor83
_this shows the monopolistic power of Google and how they can hurt individual
companies_

Changes like this hurt most if you depend on spam-like SEO.

For example, Stack Overflow hasn't lost anything from this recent algorithm
change - they actually gained from it.

