Know Your Audience
Before you can engage effectively, you need to be familiar with who you're trying to reach.
- Demographics: Who are your typical fans? What are their sexes, age ranges, locations, and interests outside of wrestling?
- Motivations: Why do they watch wrestling? Are they drawn to the action, the drama, the showmanship?
- Fandom Habits: Which social media platforms are they most active on? Do they attend live events? Are they part of online forums?
- Type of Fans: Are you targeting marks, smarks, casual fans, or a mixture?
Understanding these core fan metrics not only improves your show flow- it is also a part of the process of securing sponsorships for your wrestling promotion.
Properly Utilize Characters and Craft Compelling Storylines:
Engagement starts with investment. Fans become invested when they care about the characters and the stories being told.
- Encourage Talent to Pitch Ideas: If talent is given the opportunity to be involved with the development of their character, their morale will be increased, which is reflected in how they perform, making the show more enjoyable for fans.
- Have a Strong Storyline Concept: After choosing who the main wrestlers are, decide what the core of the feud is, what the wrestlers involved are attempting to achieve, and what at least one of the participants has to gain or lose. If the wrestler has something to gain or lose, they have a reason to care about the outcome of the feud, which means the fans will care as well, making the feud more intriguing and exciting for them. Keep in mind that even though storylines play a large role in American pro-wrestling, the wrestling action is what your fans are mainly paying to see. So make sure that the storyline encapsulates the action that takes place in the ring, instead of replacing it.
Leverage the Power of Social Media:
By using social media effectively, you can reach a wider audience, promote your events/merchandise, book talent, and engage with your fans. For example, I have used social media to raise awareness of Yanagase Pro Wrestling events.
- Create Content That Your Fans Will Want to See: To keep them engaged, post regularly. For example, a promotion should post on X 3-5 times a day, with the purpose of the posts being to make people more aware of the promotion and what it has to offer. Some of the posts should be news/information about the promotion (including who is on the roster and why people should care), and other posts would promote the promotion's upcoming shows, DVDs, etc.
- Know Which Hashtags Would Attract Your Target Audience: Using hashtags that are relevant to your content and your target audience will help you reach new followers, and using a mix of popular and niche hashtags will help you reach a wider audience. But keep in mind that using too many hashtags can actually decrease engagement.
- Kayfabe 2.0: Blur the lines between reality and performance, creating immersive and engaging narratives that extend beyond the traditional wrestling broadcast, which drives social engagement.
Provide a Great Live Event Experience:
Live wrestling events have an appeal that cannot be duplicated.
- Present a Strong Product: This means presenting exciting matches. You should also make sure that your events are unique, well-produced, and entertaining. Showcase talented wrestlers and leave attendees wanting more.
- Create a Fan-Friendly Environment at Events That Is Welcoming and Enjoyable for Them: The best-case scenario would be comfortable seating, clean restrooms, and a variety of concessions.
- Security: Have security personnel on hand to ensure fans that they will be safe and can focus entirely on the show.
- Eye contact: If the live event is a non-televised show, it would be a good idea for the ring announcer to make eye contact with the live audience. This would build a connection by making fans feel valued by the ring announcer, who is acting as the host.
- Merchandise and Meet-and-Greets: Offer opportunities for fans to take home a piece of the experience and have personal interactions with performers, satisfying their fandom. This would benefit the promotion as well- selling merchandise would generate revenue and promote your brand, and a fan looking at their favorite wrestler in person and eye to eye is an unmatched branding asset.
- Consider Hosting the Event at a Distinctive and Unconventional Location: A location such as an outdoor park, near a historical landmark, or at a theater would attract fans who may not typically attend wrestling events.
- Post-Show Engagement: Maintain post-event momentum by continuing the fan engagement online. Thank the attendees via social media immediately following the show, and publish a results report.
By understanding your audience, utilizing your talent properly, leveraging social media effectively, and making live events an experience that fans will tell their friends about, you can cultivate a loyal and passionate fanbase that will create a vibrant and energetic live event atmosphere at your shows, elevating your business to new heights.
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