Final Entry

Over the past few weeks, I’ve been blogging about the misunderstood sport of wrestling. I’m a huge fan, and I constantly follow what is going on in that world, but it was very interesting to think about all the news reports from the marketing perspective. I had a few blog entries regarding TNA – higher pay per view prices, their attempt to get mainstream attention by inviting Sarah Palin to a show, and two former WWE wrestlers they have brought into the company. As for my perception of TNA…I feel like they’re not a very smart company. They rose their prices randomly in the worst possible time and it probably did nothing positive for the company other than bring in some extra revenue. But it really would make no impact overall on things for them. As for Sarah Palin – she obviously never came to the pay per view. While it did get them some press, it was more or less just silly, and most wrestling fans don’t like TNAs silliness (they did have a look-a-like show up though). Al Snow and Mick Foley were smarter moves, but still a little unnecessary. They bring in these guys to compete with WWE, but they’re such a mega-company, it just might never happen. Hopefully they stumble onto something that works though.
As for the WWE, I touched upon their TV ratings, some charity events that they do, and their biggest pay per view of the year, Wrestlemania. It’s nice to see that Smackdown has been doing good ratings. I think it’s a great sign for the company and showing that they are giving equal attention to their shows right now (Smackdown is considered a B show) in terms of the creative side. It was also interesting to see how often WWE does charity events for people. I knew they did them throughout the year, but it seems like they do things all the time to give back - especially the Tribute to the Troops, which is such a huge event. I was surprised to see Orlando lobbying for another Wrestlemania so it will bring money to the city and because they know the fans want it. WWE seems to be on an overall positive path as a company right now (at least in terms of the news that is reported).
It was unfortunate that one of my blogs was about the passing of a wrestler and that had occurred. It’s never a fun thing to hear about. I know that that kind of thing happens too often, but I hope that I was able to open other peoples eyes to what goes on. The Wrestler opens in New York City on the 17th and is almost certainly getting Golden Globe nominations. I’m still really excited to see how this will affect the wrestling world and if will change other people’s perceptions on wrestling and increase their knowledge. I think that it is the most significant thing that I talked about throughout the semester. Overall, I enjoyed doing this blog, and keeping an extra close eye on the news that went on in the world that I constantly follow anyways. I really hope that it helped other people not just look at it as a thing where guys run around in speedos, hit each other with chairs, and have scripted winners and losers. There are millions of people that watch it, thousands that work in it, and is constantly exposed to the world on almost an everyday basis.

Toys For Tots

The WWE and some of their Superstars are teaming up with the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve today in Stamford, CT for a Toys of Tots event. ECW Champion Matt Hardy, Jeff Hardy, Maria and WWE Tag Team Champions Carlito and Primo will all be there, signing autographs for fans that come by and donate a minimum $15 new, unwrapped toy for needy children throughout the Connecticut area.

I think that this is a great program that they are teaming up with. WWE really does a lot for others this time of year, and here is another obvious example. While trying to entertain their fans by bringing them closer to the Superstars, they are helping others who are less fortunate. It gives the company a good name and shows that they try very often to do good for others.

They have teamed up with Make-a-Wish Foundation in the past...they do this Toys For Tots program...I wonder if they could try and be super creative and think up a new charity program that would be unique to the other ones that they already participate in.



http://www.wwe.com/inside/overtheropes/news/toysfortots08

Forecast Calls for (Al) Snow

PWInsider.com reports that former ECW and WWE Superstar Al Snow is expected to show at the TNA iMPACT! tapings this week. After making showing up at TNA's Final Resolution this past weekend, he would be the latest crossover to TNA from WWE. Now, Al Snow had been let go from the WWE a while ago, however, he was a pretty popular name back in the day and could easily attract certain groups of fans to TNA.

He has made his round on the independent circut lately, so he's getting his face back out there. So a return to TV could bring the fans that have recently seen him as viewers to iMPACT! if all works out right. He would be quite the complement to Mick Foley, who I mentioned earlier in this blog that TNA brought in. When they were both popular in WWE, the two of them were often paired together for comedy segments - mostly Al Snow jokes. Mick Foley would take up every opportunity that he had to make fun of Al Snow. Now, while that probably seems insignificant, wrestling fans are SUCH suckers for nostalgia. If there is a chance of a pairing like that happening in the near future, I guarantee people who wouldn't necessarily tune in would put on TNA to see if it would happen. Bringing in Al Snow is almost a sure fire way to at least gain SOME viewership for the company, and maybe some extra buys on the pay-per-views. I don't see it contributing to any potential rivalry between WWE and TNA in terms of talent, but hopefully it could be one step closer to TNA stumbling on the right formula to really compete with the WWE in the near future.

Another Wrestler Passes...

The Associated Press picked up the story of the death of Steve Bisson over the weekend. The 32 year old was found dead in a parking lot in Manchester, NH this past Thursday. He was better known as Mofo Steve Bradley to New England wrestling fans. Steve was signed to the WWE for a while back in 1998 and wrestled non-televised matches. However, he was used in their training facilities to work with current stars such as Kurt Angle.

Thankfully, there was no reported foul play in regards to his death. Steve was known to have many drug problems throughout his life, so unfortunately, it could be related to that. What does this have to do with anything else in this blog so far? The AP article says how he was indicted on heroine posession charges last month. It almost seemed like the AP HAD to report on that. If there is something remotely negative attached to the death of a professional wrestler, it has to be mentioned. And that continues the trend of the bad view most people have on wrestling and the people associated with it.

There has been a lot of untimely deaths in the world of professional wrestling. There was the Owen Hart accident where he fell to his death during a pay-per-view, Bruiser Brody who was stabbed to death in Puerto Rico, Brian Pillman who died of a heart condition, Eddie Guerrero who died of heart failure in his hotel room, and one of the most famous ones, Chris Benoit, who killed himself and his family. There are way too many more to list, many of them having resulted of drug issues. It's so unfortunate that there is that common link between so many deaths in wrestling. Whether it be an issue like Steve Bradley had with heroine, the Miss Elizabeth incident with pills, or the thought that steroid use can have a long time effect on the body that can later lead to health issues (part of the Chris Benoit thing).

It's almost like its apart of the lifestyle. To get by, so many guys mask their physical pain with different types of drugs. Or maybe they do it for no reason. The Chris Benoit death was an AWFUL awful situation, making the WWE look bad and the entire nature of the business look bad. As a fan, as the year goes by, it's so sad that you almost wait to see who the next one to go is, no matter if it's on the national level or the smaller level, like Steve Bradley. I don't mean that on an insensitive level at all, but you have to just know that it happens all the time. And it gets to a point where you're waiting for it to be someone you know. Now, the AP picks up even on smaller wrestler deaths and casts an even bigger shadow on the business. Early wrestler deaths due to drugs, the lifestyle of the business, and such will be something that will never end, unfortunately.

I didn't know Steve Bradley, but I know people who were extremely close to him; looked up to him as hero because of the impact he made on their life. RIP.

http://www.pwinsider.com/ViewArticle.php?id=35090&p=1

Tribute to the Troops 2008

The WWE crew landed in Iraq today for their sixth annual Tribute to the Troops show that they hold. For the past five years, the company has gone overseas to visit the men and women serving over there. It is always a completely volunteer trip for everyone involved, from the wrestlers to the production crew. As of right now, the confirmed Superstars on the trip are the following: John Cena

, Batista, Lilian Garcia, Maria, Alicia Fox, Mickie James, Eve Torres, Kelly Kelly, Chris Jericho, John Morrison, The Miz, Cryme Time, Chad Patton, John Cone, Jeff Hardy, Michael Cole and Joey Styles.

This yearly show is such a great event for the WWE. They go so out of their way to visit the soldiers that are kept so far away from home, especially this time of year. They try to bring a little bit of enjoyment their way. While there, they put on a show for them, but they also make individual visits to military installations and do autograph signings as well as visits to the injured men and women in the hospitals there. It is also a great way for exposure for the company and the people in it. It shows the public that these aren't just guys that like to dress in spandex and hit each other with chairs, but they do good for others when given to opportunity. It also is a chance for them to possibly get new fans. I mean, the people there are grateful for the WWE coming, so I bet that they'll continue to follow the product to some extent, especially if they had a special interaction with any of the members of the company. In 2006, the WWE received the Secretary of Defense Exceptional Public Service Award, so they are nicely recognized by the government for this trip. This year, the show will on December 20th on NBC at 9 pm.

I've enjoyed watching the shows over the years. I'm looking forward to the 20th.

The Sunshine State Wants another Wrestlemania

There was an article in the Orlando Sentinel today acknowledging this years past Wrestlemania that took place in Orlando, FL. According to the article, the event brought in $51.5 million dollars to Central Florida. The biggest spectacle of the year for WWE takes place usually in March or April. Wrestlemania 24, which aired on March 30th, 2008, took place in the Citrus Bowl, setting a record attendance of 74,635 people in the venue.

Wrestlemania isn't just a day long event. The WWE spends months building up to the actual show and make events all week long for fans to attend. According to the article, Wrestlemania drew fans from all 50 states and 21 countries that spent an average of 3.8 nights in the Orlando area. That helped benefit area hotels, restaurants, retail locations, and all of the parks. And the WWE wasn't the only company to capitalize on the amount of fans in the area. TNA is based in Orlando, so they held shows three days in a row to give fans who normally wouldn't have a chance to see a live taping. One of these shows included their first ever live broadcast (rather than the live to tape shows they have). Also, the top independent company in the country, Ring of Honor, held two shows the Friday and Saturday before Wrestlemania, drawing over 1,000 fans each night. Fans that normally wouldn't get to see Ring of Honor or TNA have a chance to see it because Wrestlemania brings ALL the wrestling fans to one area of the country at once for this yearly event.

WWE tries to give the most to their fans by making many different opportunities for fans to interact with the wrestlers. They have signings all over the Florida area, appearances at theme parks, special brunches for fans to eat with the wrestlers, etc. This brings the thousands of fans to different parts of the state to help generate revenue in even more areas. The article talks about of the fans in the area clearly want WWE to return to the Citrus Bowl for another Wrestlemania. But it wouldn't be a too hard to guess that the city of Orlando would love for the WWE to come back to generate another bulk of money like that for the city. Also, it's nice for the WWE that they city had a good experience and would probably go out of their way to get a 'Mania back there, rather than the WWE seeking out cities. It makes it look like the company and the product are wanted, which sheds a good light on them.



http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/orl-tourism0108dec01,0,259821.story

The Wrestler

Ok. This movie is something I'm REALLY excited for. It is a little off topic from any wrestling on television, however, it will be incredible exposure for the business itself. The movie poster had been released the other week, and more recently, the official trailer for the movie. The only film about wrestling that has been made is Ready to Rumble. Now, I've seen that movie, and I was pretty much embarrassed to be a wrestling fan after watching it. It had stereotypical fans and wrestlers in it. But whatever, it's Hollywood. That's what they wanted to portray to try and make money.

The Wrestler, on the other hand, is doing something completely different. Darren Aronofsky is giving the audience a real look at wrestling, and where the wrestler comes from and what he goes through. This isn't the TV world and pretty world of wrestling. It's the side that the rest of the world doesn't see. In this movie, Aronofsky tells the story of a once famous wrestler's comeback to the ring and the sacrifices he's made in his life along the way. Mickey Rourke fits the role of Randy "The Ram" Robinson SO well. I love his look and the acting I've seen so far.

Now, this might not do anything for the WWE. It might not do anything for TNA. I'm not sure if viewers of the movie will think to look at either of those companies after seeing it. What I'm really interested in seeing is if it does anything for the independent wrestling companies that were used while filming this movie. In the trailer, you see banners for the three companies that helped out - WXW, CZW and ROH. Personally, I'm really excited because I work for ROH, and I really hope this helps expose the company more. It is one that is on the brink of possibly being big one day, but they can't really do anything else to get to the next level without blowing tons of money. Exposure from this movie could potentially do worlds for the company. The big match that the entire movie builds up to occured at a ROH show. You see the name plastered everywhere during it. It will also be interesting if anything happens for any of the wrestlers that were used as extras during the movie and if they get anything out of it.

I go to independent wrestling shows at least 2 weekends out of every month. What is being shown in this movie is stuff that I see all the time - it's practically my life (minus me wrestling). I know guys like Randy "The Ram." For their sake, for the wrestlers sake, it's nice that this side is being shown. Anyways, December can't get here soon enough. I know I'll be there on opening night. Here's the trailer!




Article about the movie:
http://www.pwinsider.com/ViewArticle.php?id=34740&p=1

Have A Nice Day

He's wrestled, he's written autobiographies, novels, and children's books, and now, he'll be on a sitcom. Mick Foley is just trying to do it all! According to PWInsider, Mick is proposing a sitcom where he plays an exaggerated version of himself. As of now, there is hopes that SpikeTV will be interested in this proposed show since Mick is currently associated with TNA and TNA airs on Spike. He is a fairly famous name from wrestling, having made numerous cameos in TV shows in the past. It will be interesting if the show gets put into production and picked up. And if it does, if it generates any interest. Mick Foley/Cactus Jack/Dude Love is a throwback name for people who used to watch wrestling and don't anymore. Therefore, it is a good chance that it will bring in people who were wrestling fans in the past. Many other wrestlers have made appearances on TV shows, but recently, its been newer names, so it doesn't generate the same kind of interest, espeically because it doesn't have the same type of popularity as it did 10 years ago. They have also put wrestlers in movies, and outside of The Rock, that hasn' been too successful. For anyone to do a project such as this, I think that Mick Foley is the perfect person. Not to mention, he's a hell of a character and a guy!



http://www.pwinsider.com/ViewArticle.php?id=34700&p=1

From VP Candidate to Inside the Wrestling Ring?

TNA has invited Governor Sarah Palin to the Final Resolution pay-per-view in Orlando, FL on December 7th. Dixie Carter, President of TNA, said that she would personally fly in Governor Palin and her husband so that they could have a "Sarah Palin Ceremony" during the show. They would make her an honorary member of the female tag team "The Beautiful People" as well as an honorary TNA knockout (the name for all of the female wrestlers at TNA). If Governor Palin agrees to do this, TNA has agreed to donate $50,000 to the charity of her choice, or a youth hockey association in Wasilla, AK.

This is quite a marketing campaign by TNA here. Considering the all the media outlets Sarah Palin has put herself on lately, it was very good timing for them to put this offer out. And it's a great offer for them to donate to a charity of her choice if she comes. It shows that they can branch outside of the world of wrestling and sports personalities they have previous invited (ex. Johnny Damon, A.J. Pyrzenski). Furthermore, linking a charity donation to the appearance puts the company in a good light, for they aren't yet known for their chairty work. One more point - it also makes you wonder if they're doing better financially, since they are able to hand off that amount of money. In the past, they've always been known as a company with money problems. Personally, I don't think that Governor Palin would go to the pay-per-view. Wrestling is viewed so negatively by the general public. However, I would LOVE to be proven wrong and see her there. She would potentially get some viewers who wouldn't necessarily buy the show just to see her in a ring, as well as a chance to have a generous donation made to a chairty.


http://www.tnawrestling.com/content/view/357/84/

Ratings, Ratings, Ratings!

WWE Smackdown's move has been doing pretty good things for the MyNetworkTV. For the third week in a row, it was the most watched telecast among the viewers of the network. They had 3.5 million viewers for Friday night's show. It must mean that in terms of what the WWE is airing right now on Smackdown, they're doing something right, since more and more viewers are tuning in each week. If this trend continues, it could lead to confidence in advertisers, which would lead to more revenue for the company, and more people to see the ads being shown. It seems as if WWE sometimes has trouble getting outside sponsors. Some of their pay-per-views, all which are sponsored by something, are sometimes sponsored by themselves - another aspect of the company. If ratings continue to increase, hopefully it will lead to more advertisers that want to work with them, since they'll see more people are watching.

http://www.wwe.com/inside/news/oncetwicethreetimesasmackdown
http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/content_display/esearch/e3i8c3efd0edfe72551ae8ca54028838047



Now, as for WWE Raw, the show did a 2.9 for the second week in a row. So their ratings didn't go up or down....meaning they're at least doing okay right now. However, these are still considered low ratings for the WWE's "A" show. I wouldn't be surprised if advertisers would be more hesitant to show their product on Raw rather than Smackdown, because it's the same eyes seeing it each week. At least on Smackdown, new eyes are seeing the show each week, so that is new potential customers that are being exposed to a product....even though Raw has the overall larger audience. It seems like WWE needs to combine minds here - expose Smackdown a little more to get as many viewers as Raw, but do whatever they're doing on Smackdown to Raw to get new viewers each week.

http://www.pwinsider.com/ViewArticle.php?id=34268&p=1

Bound For....High PPV Prices?

TNA had their annual Bound For Glory pay-per-view on Sunday. However, the price to order the show increased $5 to $34.99 for the program, as opposed to $29.99 before. Now, $5 obviously isn't a lot of money, but it's a curious time for them to be increasing prices for their product since the economy is doing so poorly and Americans aren't able to spend as much money. Fans are wondering if they are going to raise the prices on all of their pay-per-views or just Bound For Glory and try to hype it up as their big show of the year, like WWE's Wrestlemania. It will be interesting to see if a price increase will affect their PPV buyrates when those numbers eventually come out.

Here's the Smackdown...lowdown...whatever you'd like to call it

Professional wrestling is fake, right? It's scripted. The winner and loser are predetermined (though, depending on what two teams play each other in certain sports, one could say the same thing). You need to be an actor while being an athlete. Even though people know that, I still feel as if it’s just as valid a sport compared to what else is out there. You still need to be in shape, be athletic, and have to train to become a wrestler.

There is the World Wrestling Entertainment, or better known as the WWE. It was once known as a northeast territory of the National Wrestling Alliance. However, after a dispute over a match in the 60s, the owner, Vince McMahon Sr., decided to break apart from the NWA and created the World Wide Wrestling Federation. The company that we know today has been around since 1980 when Vince McMahon Jr. (still current owner) purchased Capitol Wrestling Corporation from his father. A company that was once only known in the northeast was taken, put on syndicated programming, and exposed to people across the United States. At the time, it was an unheard of thing to do because most companies just stayed to their region. But Vince was a machine when it came to expanding his company. He generated money from advertising, TV deals, tape sales, etc., and used it to “steal” other talent from companies. This created competition with the WWF (name change for aesthetic reasons in the 70s). But competition only makes people work harder. He moved the company onto a nationally touring one, created ground-breaking wrestling shows, such as Wrestlemania, and eventually created television shows.

In the early 90s, while the company had some financial problems due to allegations of steroid abuse, some wrestlers deflected to the only rival company, World Championship Wrestling (WCW). That helped the WCW grow, creating competition for the WWF and more entertainment for the fans. As the WWF lost wrestlers, they also created new ones, some of which were the biggest names ever in wrestling. With WCW gaining speed, the “Monday Night Wars” arose, with WWF airing Raw is War and WCW airing Monday Nitro. Each week, the shows competed in a ratings war. They were often extremely close, until WWF pulled ahead in the late 90s, and for good. WCW just couldn’t stay afloat in the new century, so McMahon eventually bought the company, and the WWF was the only major wrestling company in the country.

After a legal issue with the World Wildlife Fund, they are now known as the WWE. Today, they air original programming 3, sometimes 4 times a week. And they are a merchandising machine! T-shirts, DVDs, CDs, a variety of toys, and video games are just some of the things that they plaster their name and wrestlers all over. They also put the wrestlers in movies and TV shows. It is integrated into our culture more than people realize.

Not only is there the WWE, but there is also Total Nonstop Action, or TNA. The company isn't too popular yet, but they are working their way to becoming bigger. They were developed when WCW closed down. Many of the people that worked there had nowhere to go, so they decided to start up TNA as a weekly pay-per-view wrestling company. They were able to keep costs down by not touring and holding their shows in the same venue every week. The fan base grew, and TNA was able to move onto longer pay-per-views and a weekly TV show, IMPACT!, first with Fox Sports Net, but in 2005, they secured a deal with Spike TV. Today, TNA has pre-taped original programming each week and a live pay-per-view every month. They too have DVDs, t-shirts, etc. to market themselves the same way the WWE does. The expansion has led to running live events across the country, exposing themselves to new people all the time.

Wrestling is all over all the time. Between these two companies, it’s on national television 4 days a week – sometimes more when there are pay-per-views. Many fans are starting to feel let down by the WWE because they focus so much on the entertainment aspect rather than the sport aspect. That’s when they start to deflect to TNA, and sometimes away from national wrestling altogether (some fans go to local independent promotions). Even so, both companies are taking steps forward. This past year, WWE went HD and TNA plans to open their own studio with brand new, state of the art equipment to have as a home base for editing and on location shooting. They are both trying to expose themselves in new ways and I plan to keep an eye on that in this blog.