Instead Of Taking TNA On The Road...

[Alex]

They should alternate venues.

Basically they should use two or three other venues besides the Impact Zone. I always thought they should've alternated between The Asylum venue and the Impact Zone to keep things different.

While its not as big a step as going on the road full time it would make TNA feel bigger because they can use different venues for their tapings.

 

[Tree Of Woe]

Well, considering the Asylum Arena is now closed, that won't be happening. I honestly think the best thing to do would be to take it on the road. Even if they only do the south east and maybe up to Philly, the crowd being different every show would help tremendously. Also, if they have to stay in the Impact Zone only, they should stop with the fake crowd noise. It really doesn't sound good.

 

[TheWrestlo]

If they go on the road, they should do it all around the U.S., but considering TNAs dumbass management if they go one the road it'l only be in states near florida, if they do this then they should have all the PPVs up north in cities like NYC, Philly, Detriot, Chicago and other northern cities, this way TNA gets on the road and at least some people can go out to see IW.

 

[kingofkings01013]

Stop with fake sounds, cut useless talent that absorbs too much of your cash. You have added "big names" and ratings stay about the same. Get rid of them free up some cash to pay for going on to the road part / full time and showcase the younger talent. Guarantee you will have an equal to bigger draw.

 

[DeathClutch]

For TNA/Impact to grow as a company and get out the masses they need to go on the road and get their name out there. It says a lot when Flair goes to the WWE HOF and says his last wrestling match was at WM24 and most people wouldn't think bs because they don't know of or follow TNA.

 

[jea2z]

Well, considering the Asylum Arena is now closed, that won't be happening. I honestly think the best thing to do would be to take it on the road. Even if they only do the south east and maybe up to Philly, the crowd being different every show would help tremendously. Also, if they have to stay in the Impact Zone only, they should stop with the fake crowd noise. It really doesn't sound good.

The Asylum Arena is still open. They do all of the Crossfire Ent. shows there. I live around Nashville. So it would be cool if they came back there every once in a while. But it seems like they have mostly forgotten about their hometown.

 

[Tree Of Woe]

The Asylum Arena is still open. They do all of the Crossfire Ent. shows there. I live around Nashville. So it would be cool if they came back there every once in a while. But it seems like they have mostly forgotten about their hometown.

From Wikipedia:

Asylum Arena (2010-2012)

Roger Artigiani announced in October 2010 that mixed martial arts group Asylum Fight League had purchased the naming rights to the venue and renamed it Asylum Arena.[23]

Musician Stan Bush played a concert at the venue in April 2011 as part of Chikara's annual King of Trios weekend.[24]

In May 2011, New Japan Pro Wrestling concluded their first ever tour of the United States with an event at the venue.[25]

Chikara broadcast High Noon, their first live internet pay-per-view event from the venue in November 2011.[26]

Joanna Pang, the new lessee of the venue, plans to close and extensively renovate it beginning in February 2012.[27]

On January 14, 2012, Evolve presented what could potentially be the venue's final professional wrestling event, A Tribute to the Arena.[28]

On January 21, 2012, Peltz Boxing Promotions will hold their 22nd show at the arena in what could possibly be the final boxing event to take place at the venue. This is currently slated to be the final event prior to the closing and renovation of the venue. [29]

As off April 2nd, 2012, the walls of the former ECW Arena are being stripped all the way down to the legendary venue's foundation.

 

[Syborgg]

The problem is that some of the older talent i.e. Angle, Sting and RVD sign on to TNA because there is no travel. That might be why it attracts some of the stars from the past. The big money isn't there, but since you could buy a house in Florida and just kind of go to work like a normal person, it works, especially for the older guys. I realize it makes the company look cheap, but at the same time ECW took place in a fricken bingo hall and look at the cult following it had.

 

[jea2z]

That is the ECW Asylum Arena. Back when TNA was based out of Nashville they had The Asylum at the Tennessee State Fairgrounds. It was going to be torn down but they have decided not to. But this is a different arena than the one your post is about I guess.

 

[prush80]

What some of you are failing to realize, perhaps realize, is what if you are on the lower card or not gettting paid much. You live near the impact zone. Now you have to drive elsewhere, can you afford it? Especially on a weekly basis? You're going to be on TV every week and broke.

 

[VencomHardcore]

TNA is killing its own growth. They do need at least two venues if they are not going to travel. And if Orlando is going to be where the tv tapings are then Nashville and Fayetteville, NC should host ppvs since both arenas are very cheap and TNA draws large crowds in both places.

If TNA cut all of the WWE stars except for two. Then they have more money, can hire younger stars that cost less and put money into promotion.

For those that complain about the young stars not affording the travel. With the extra cash from paying the WWE stars, they can purchase a coach bus and just have the stars travel together.

But TNA isn't going to bring in more money from Orlando with people getting free tv tapings and ppvs.

 

[Maikeru_1979]

what they need to do is just travel the state first. going to miami, orlando, daytona beach, tallahasse, panama city beach. get different WRESTLING crowds, not tourists at all the shows yet keep it close enough that wrestlers can travel cheaply.

 

[Defekt]

I think there was a recent report on this basically saying it wasn't worth it to TNA to take Impact on the road often.

Shows outside the Impact Zone don't bump ratings enough to justify the increased travel and production costs.

 

[Zeven_Zion]

I think there was a recent report on this basically saying it wasn't worth it to TNA to take Impact on the road often.

Shows outside the Impact Zone don't bump ratings enough to justify the increased travel and production costs.

Why would they? I find it extremely difficult to see the correlation between road shows and ratings. How does a show on the road impact the quality of the program aside from an aesthetic point of view? You just have more people in the background who tend to be louder. Is that really going to make fans tune in? I'll give you one better. Is that really going to make the fans tune and stay tuned it? I don't think so. No one watches a wrestling show for the crowds, they watch for what happens in the middle of the crowd, in that four sided ring. Ergo, if what happens in the ring isn't interesting enough it is going to affect the ratings. So whether you have a show at a sold out Madison Square Garden or a sound recording studio at Universal, your ratings will remain frozen solid because the essence of the show is not compelling enough. Don't get me wrong, crowds make it better, but they don't make it.

And mind you I don't think that the ratings issue stems from the product. It was 0.99 last week and 1.2 two weeks before. It goes up and down the same little area but never above that. It shows you something. I tend to believe that the bigger problem is poor marketing and a lazy attitude when it comes to advertising anything TNA related. When's the last cool looking TNA poster you saw? Where did you see it? How many times did you watch a TNA commercial on another network? Hell, how many times did you see a TNA commercial on SpikeTV? That is if people even WATCH SpikeTV. Poor TNA has no side audience to draw from on that damn network, they're their highest rated shows or just up there.

TNA should be raising a fuss about everything they do. Going to Bumfuck, Texas and selling out a rinky-dink arena will do as much for the ratings as the Three Stooges did for RAW. The product is fine, it ain't revolutionary and orgasmic, but there's little wrong with it. What goes on backstage seems to be rotten and naturally that stinks up the entire company.

 

[JJYanks121]

What I don't understand is why the first focus is on taking IMPACT on the road. If it's me, the first goal would be to take Pay Per Views on the road. Some of them are already, so why not all of them?

Lets realize a few things with this suggestion. PPVs are live so there already is an added production cost whether you are in the IZ or on the road. It's also a show people pay for, not a cable show so there's no ratings to think about.

Wrestling has since the 80s been about the PPVs. You build up to them and you deliver your big matches on them. If that is to be true, conceivably people would buy them on TV and if it is in their area, they would pay money to see it in person. Provided TNA changes their business model to reflect this (at this point, the TV show is treated as more important in most regards), I think this could be a great step for them. You're talking 12 shows outside of the Impact Zone, of which 3 are already. You are adding 9 shows. I'm sure you can find 9 arenas in markets that you can promote yourself and sell a bunch of seats. This would go a long way to making TNA Pay Per Views feel like they mean more and it may even make them more money. I would start with that and worry about Impact later.

 

[Syborgg]

What some of you are failing to realize, perhaps realize, is what if you are on the lower card or not gettting paid much. You live near the impact zone. Now you have to drive elsewhere, can you afford it? Especially on a weekly basis? You're going to be on TV every week and broke.

^^ This is a good point. I hear and read(I don't always believe what I read) reports of wrestlers getting to a show, whether it's WWE or TNA only to find out that they aren't being used. These guys are independant contractors. The wrestlers pay for their own travel(plane tickets, hotels, meals, rental cars etc.) and it's alot easier to swallow if you take a short drive to work vs. a possible flight or a longer drive only to find out they aren't paying you because you aren't needed for this week's episode.

The only way I could see travel being viable for TNA is if they stuck to a territory like within the southern states. They also would have to tape atleast 2 episodes in one spot to keep costs down. Then you have to remember that WWE owns exclusives to alot of the bigger arenas around the U.S., TNA would have to find and use some smaller venues although, that might keep costs down too.

 

[K-Mac]

They should try holding one of their tapings at UCF Arena. If it works out, good. If it doesn't, well, it was worth a shot.

 

[whoopin' ass]

TNA needs to start filming outside of the Impact Zone for 2 main reasons. first, it looks better. While it looks similar to WWE when they do the ring shots, when the camera pans the Impact Zone, you can see that there are a lot less people there then say for Raw or Smackdown. Personally, I think TNA should put out the best product they can and not worry about WWE but that does give the viewer an impression that TNA is less than WWE. Yet the few times i have seen TNA film outside the Impact Zone, it looked like a bigger promotion and in this industry, perception counts for a lot. while i can understand not doing it every other taping, at least once a quarter, they need to go somewhere.

second reason is the fans, no offense to anyone. you need that rotation of fans to tell you what really works and what doesn't work. being at one place all the time, especially with the limited house show schedule TNA has, can screw up their perception.

so what can they do? can't charge to get into the Impact Zone - we know that already. Why can't they tape shows after they do a ppv somewhere? since they have a crew there already, has to be a way to make that work. also, why not tape some live events? if they know they are going to be in some larger venue with a good crowd, take a couple cameras and have taz and tenay do voiceover work afterwards. i don't think there are many alternatives for them but they do need to start getting away from the Impact zone a little more often

 

[HBsam31]

I like the traveling the state idea just to get a start. I agree that they need to have different crowds to see what works and what doesn't. I think though that PPV's need to be the first priority. Get all 12 PPV's at different places across the country. I know they already travel some of the PPV's out of Orlando. After the get that done that would be the time to start traveling Impact around the state. More fans will get exposed to the live product, and maybe the company can then gauge how to improve it. If traveling throughout Florida works for them maybe then they can branch out of the state. I think the slow and steady approach would be best, but I think they really need to get the product live to fans outside of the Impact Zone.

 

[kor420]

I Think they should take the shows on the road, but only travel the south east. They will build a larger fanbase than they would just sitting in one spot for so long.

 

[Hulk Cena]

TNA's ratings are nothing to sneeze at, they do solid numbers for cable TV. If the booking were to ever start making sense they could hit two million viewers, it's not out of the question. However I believe at the root of it all the network isn't a good fit for TNA.

In any event in regards to going on the road.. TNA already does that consistantly. They just aren't televised. I LOL at the impact zone comments like thats the only place they work.. TNA has a ton of house shows that only draw 1000 people (on average) that would look soo weak on TV.

I think people are missing the point entirely! you go on the road to advertise your product. Once you're product is established and you can come close to selling out without the need of TV then you bring the TV side of it in and make it look good. Hell in Charlottesville VA they only drew 850 people.. if they went on TV with that it would look WORSE than the impact zone. That wouldn't help it.. the issue is SPIKE TV.. TNA is doing the best it can but Spike by itself doesn't have the awareness of other channels like TBS, TNT, NBC, FOX, USA, etc.

Case in point, if TNA was on a more global network they would be watched more. (Look at the UK and India ratings as an example.. (14 million viewers in India)

TNA’s Impact Wrestling shattered it’s previous record in the United Kingdom with 321,000 estimated viewers by far eclipsing the UK’s showing of WWE RAW. Well now it seems TNA can put another feather in it’s cap with the viewership of their India brand Ring Ka King.
http://www.tnastars.com/2012/02/13/...k-impact-wrestling-shatters-its-prior-record/

also

Beyond a handful of WWE tours of the country, India has basically no pro-wrestling history or infrastructure. But it’s a vast and untapped market, and the people at TNA apparently just figured what the hell. Everything about the first Ring Ka King season seems geared toward making this ridiculous American art form intelligible to an audience that has no idea what it’s watching. And it appears to be working: According to some reports, the show’s first episode garnered 14 million viewers. That makes the Ring Ka King TV by far the most-watched pro wrestling program on the planet, with an audience several times larger than the American crowd who watches Monday Night Raw every week.”

Pretty impressive. Not only the ratings but the fact that GQ magazine dedicated an entire article to the venture shows TNA is making leaps and bounds in the mainstream awareness growth department. Feel free to check out the entire article at the link above, it’s a very informative read.
http://www.gq.com/entertainment/tv/...-ka-king-and-indias-wrestling-revolution.html

According to sources, Ring Ka King ratings have stayed quite consistent over the last few weeks hanging in the mid 1's. ColorsTV, which generally sits at the lower half of the top 10 networks bracket is said to be pleased considering the stiff competition the series faces from other major shows on competing networks and major sporting events such as Cricket matches. Ring Ka King is still widely regarded as the world's most watched wrestling show aimed at one single country.

Then factor in all the ratings in UK... and Ireland too.. (see links above) and what do they all have in common?

They are on TV networks that everyone knows.. and uses.. Spike is a lousy network for TNA's growth. Going on the road isn't the problem, they are already going on the road.. its the network that is holding them back. Obviously they are people that love the TNA product other wise it wouldn't have millions of people that tune in across the world.

In any event when it comes to the UK It's a business decision on both WWE and TNA's part. WWE decided to be on a subscription channel and TNA decided to be on a free channel. In the end, what that creates is a free product (TNA) that is more popular in the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland than a paid product (WWE). If you search around you'll see that not only is TNA more popular than WWE over there, but it is the most watched professional wrestling show on that side of the pond in the last 10 years. TNA is globally growing.. Its the USA that seems to be the hurdle.. and thats basically because of Spike.

If I were TNA I would start showing clips of these venues across the world (they do that alot with their last tour) to the US fans.. let them see how big they are across the world!! (not just the USA) then they would have a legit arguement that they are the most watched wrestling program in the world..today. This would also be sort of self promotion to make them seem bigger than they appear on the Impact Zone.. but the numbers don't lie (see links in the quotes).

Changing their perception:
They need to start bragging about the stuff they accomplish.. instead of complaining about they stuff they haven't accomplished. This will change the mentality of peoples view of them in a positive light. Play to WIN!

 

[Weems2k]

It is kinda a catch 22. For TNA to grow, and get their name out, they have to travel more. Which of course means more costs, a heavier travel schedule, etc. I liked the idea that someone posted about having their PPV's on the road, and keep Impact in the Dirtball Zone...errr.. I mean impact zone.

 

[rohwrestlingfan777]

Why cant TNA go to all the Universal Parks as in not just "Universal Studios Florida"

but all of them..

Universal Studios Hollywood (Los Angeles, California, United States; wholly owned)
Universal Studios Hollywood
Universal CityWalk


Universal Studios Store.
Universal Orlando Resort (Orlando, Florida, United States; wholly owned)
Universal Studios Florida
Islands of Adventure
Universal CityWalk
Wet 'n Wild

Universal Studios Japan (Osaka, Japan; owned in partnership with local companies)
Universal Studios Japan
Universal CityWalk
Universal Studios Singapore (Singapore; owned by Genting Group)

 

[Rayne]

It doesn't matter where they go; what matters is that they make people pay.

I understand their agreement with Universal. That sucks. But people who have invested money into a ticket are not only the more interested part of the fanbase to begin with, but are also more likely to try and cheer your product when it sucks. (People who paid for Lockdown instead of streaming it seemed to be a lot happier with that steaming pile of shit.)

So a televised road tour is unrealistic for TNA/IW at this current moment. OK, let's deal within realities. Get out of the fucking Impact Zone. Buy an old concert hall or similar structure, refurbish it into an 800-seat arena, and control the gate. You can even cut down to probably 600 in a small enough building. The idea isn't to draw a big crowd for a taping; the idea is to draw a loud, passionate crowd every week. Get them in a small room with every cheer bouncing off the walls. Six hundred looks like a lot more if you place them right.

TNA/IW's hope right now isn't going to be in drawing a big audience every week. They've got passionate fans, but not as many of them as they'd like. What TNA/IW needs to be doing is providing the illusion that their entire fan base is passionate about the product. From watching Impact (or Lockdown), you'd get the idea that the fans are there because they were hoping to get a $20 picture with Kurt Angle.

 

[Yesiamaduck]

I honestly feel they need to focus a littler more attention to the UK market & whilst I'm not saying they should relocate here or anything I do personally think they should hold 2 pay per views a year in the UK & arguably make them the bigger shows such as Victory Road and Lockdown.... the reason for this? Because they'll get a hot crowd that'll sell out an arena because they will be the only major promotion putting on a pay per view calibar show on in the UK. This'll make the more important shows seem a lot more of a big deal then they currently are. Hell I'll go and I'm not even a huge TNA fan. Ths will also probably rake in a lot of viewers on the free to air Challenge.

They could put over the fact they're bringing the show to the prestigious city of London England where some of the biggest finals & competitions in the world take place and how they're the number 1 wrestling company in the country. (Even if it's soley based on TV ratings and not merchandise, financial pull and brand awareness)

They do not pull in gigantic ppv buys in the US so I think that's a bit of a non factor like it is for the WWE and timezone differences and they'll pull in a lot of money from the tour alone.