NXT should be the blueprint for TNA

[Can you afford to pay me, Gah]

Dec 22, 2013 12:44:23 GMT -5 SOR said:

People always say this type of thing and it's very easy to say it but a lot harder to do it.

First of all, TNA is an international promotion which means you can't just fire their bread and butter guys like Sting, Hardy, Angle etc and replace them with independent guys. So many people would tune out entirely and TNA would lose popularity and ultimately money. Guys like Roode, Daniels, Joe etc are the ones who need to be replaced by rising independent stars.

Second of all, It's a lot harder to find good talent then you guys think. A lot of you have the "Sign good wrestlers" mentality but that doesn't work for an international company. TNA is looking for guys with a look, guys who can work and guys who can be entertaining week in and week out and ultimately draw people to watch or pay to see them. Being a "good wrestler" isn't going to get you that.

Thirdly, A lot of you seem to have the mentality of "TNA should be looking to indy darlings" but again, it isn't viable. The reason? Lets hypothetically say Chris Hero is making 60,000 dollars a year for everything he does from booking fee to seminar to dvd cut to whatever. lets say TNA approach him and ask what he wants to sign with them. What do you think is going to happen? Hero is going to ask for probably around 90,000 a year if not more so he can keep the same lifestyle.

Now think about this, Hero probably wants a 3 year deal and TNA would want him for that as well. That 90,000? It's suddenly a contract worth 270,000 dollars. TNA signs Hero, the smarks rejoice but lets say things don't work out and Hero doesn't get over with a TV audience and he flops. Then what? Then TNA has wasted almost a quarter of a million dollars on a talent that nobody cares for.

That's the situation with most of these indy darlings. They're big enough deals to make big money on the indies so they want a lot to sign exclusively with a company. They're unproven at a national level though so it's a huge risk.

As for my opinion on this:

TNA needs to focus on WWE rejects and complete unknowns. WWE rejects like Bateman don't have other options and aren't big enough deals to work indy dates week to week so they're going to sign for a lot less then a guy who is making 1000-1500 working all the top indies. These guys already have training from the best company in the world, they know how to work the cameras, the audience etc etc so go with them.

As for the unknowns, TNA should send a scout out to scout completely obscure independents. I am talking about your local flea market wrestling card. If you see a guy with some potential and a great look then sign him to a miniscule deal and work with him. Ultimately these guys should be in their 20's.

Apart from that of course TNA should remain on the look out for big releases from the WWE but WWE is generally holding onto their talent these days so that is definitely easier said then done.

Oh and as for NXT, the reason they can attract all this great talent is because they are WWE. Everybody there wants to main event WrestleMania and get those 750,000 dollar paydays. Nobody in the indies dreams about working a Bound For Glory main event or anything like that so TNA needs to stick with the desperate workers whilst WWE can cherry pick the very best in the world.

TNA shouldn't focus on WWE rejects at all unless that have some kind of real value. I mean if they couldn't cut it in the WWE what good are they in the WWE? I mean if they left the WWE because THEY wanted to leave that is one thing but if they are someone like Chavo. No they should never sign them. Chris Hero can be a value because he was never on WWE TV outside of NXT. He is a known to have a lot of talent but he was let good because he didn't get into the kind of shape THEY wanted him. TNA needs to make new stars and to do they get the best of the best out of the indies. That what worked before with Punk and Bryan and if TNA got bookers and writers with a clue they have it with Joe and Aries. Now they need to get the next generation of those guys. So Steen and Cole are those guys right now. Cole has Superstar in the making all over him.

[Brandon Walsh is Insane.]

Cole just resigned with ROH i thought.

[Can you afford to pay me, Gah]

Dec 23, 2013 0:39:15 GMT -5 Brandon Walsh is Insane. said:

Cole just resigned with ROH i thought.

I forgot that he did. He was an example but there are others like Michael Elgin who I don't think is ROH signed as he does a lot of other indies. He only real downfall is his balding hair but a hell of a talent. I mean the way I see wrestling from a Main Stream company like TNA is out in the indies you go after the best in the indies. There the ones who have the best chance of being the break out stars. Honestly very few what is called internet darlings or the elite Indie talent do they end up failing. The ones they do it seems to be noty there fault in most cases just lack on a window.

[Deleted]

Yes. NXT is the best wrestling show on TV/the internet right now.

With TNA's distribution deals they would do gangbusters if they copied 1/3rd of what NXT does.

Its a simple, accessible, program with characters that people can get into easily. It is the perfect model for attracting NEW fans.

WWE cast offs and crash booking are a proven method for LOSING fans at this point. "Name recognition" means dick in the wrestling world anymore. TV is a far different medium now than it was when that kind of stuff worked.

[Reflecto]

Dec 23, 2013 0:45:51 GMT -5 Can you afford to pay me, Gah said:

Dec 23, 2013 0:39:15 GMT -5 Brandon Walsh is Insane. said:

Cole just resigned with ROH i thought.

I forgot that he did. He was an example but there are others like Michael Elgin who I don't think is ROH signed as he does a lot of other indies. He only real downfall is his balding hair but a hell of a talent. I mean the way I see wrestling from a Main Stream company like TNA is out in the indies you go after the best in the indies. There the ones who have the best chance of being the break out stars. Honestly very few what is called internet darlings or the elite Indie talent do they end up failing. The ones they do it seems to be noty there fault in most cases just lack on a window.

That does tie into another problem with indy darlings- TNA needs to get them in a very hard-to-find sweet spot to really make it work. A indy darling TNA could get right now has to be good enough to make fans care, but have just enough flaws so that WWE wouldn't touch them. Combined, that's a small level- but viable: Instead of TNA going after your Adam Coles, Kevin Steens, or Michael Elgins, maybe TNA has to roll the dice again with guys like, say, Jimmy Jacobs or The Briscoes- who have just enough flaws/experience so that WWE would never sign them, but have enough of a name so that the TNA fans could get excited.

[Glitch]

Dec 22, 2013 12:44:23 GMT -5 SOR said:

People always say this type of thing and it's very easy to say it but a lot harder to do it.

First of all, TNA is an international promotion which means you can't just fire their bread and butter guys like Sting, Hardy, Angle etc and replace them with independent guys. So many people would tune out entirely and TNA would lose popularity and ultimately money. Guys like Roode, Daniels, Joe etc are the ones who need to be replaced by rising independent stars.

Second of all, It's a lot harder to find good talent then you guys think. A lot of you have the "Sign good wrestlers" mentality but that doesn't work for an international company. TNA is looking for guys with a look, guys who can work and guys who can be entertaining week in and week out and ultimately draw people to watch or pay to see them. Being a "good wrestler" isn't going to get you that.

Thirdly, A lot of you seem to have the mentality of "TNA should be looking to indy darlings" but again, it isn't viable. The reason? Lets hypothetically say Chris Hero is making 60,000 dollars a year for everything he does from booking fee to seminar to dvd cut to whatever. lets say TNA approach him and ask what he wants to sign with them. What do you think is going to happen? Hero is going to ask for probably around 90,000 a year if not more so he can keep the same lifestyle.

Now think about this, Hero probably wants a 3 year deal and TNA would want him for that as well. That 90,000? It's suddenly a contract worth 270,000 dollars. TNA signs Hero, the smarks rejoice but lets say things don't work out and Hero doesn't get over with a TV audience and he flops. Then what? Then TNA has wasted almost a quarter of a million dollars on a talent that nobody cares for.

That's the situation with most of these indy darlings. They're big enough deals to make big money on the indies so they want a lot to sign exclusively with a company. They're unproven at a national level though so it's a huge risk.

As for my opinion on this:

TNA needs to focus on WWE rejects and complete unknowns. WWE rejects like Bateman don't have other options and aren't big enough deals to work indy dates week to week so they're going to sign for a lot less then a guy who is making 1000-1500 working all the top indies. These guys already have training from the best company in the world, they know how to work the cameras, the audience etc etc so go with them.

As for the unknowns, TNA should send a scout out to scout completely obscure independents. I am talking about your local flea market wrestling card. If you see a guy with some potential and a great look then sign him to a miniscule deal and work with him. Ultimately these guys should be in their 20's.

Apart from that of course TNA should remain on the look out for big releases from the WWE but WWE is generally holding onto their talent these days so that is definitely easier said then done.

Oh and as for NXT, the reason they can attract all this great talent is because they are WWE. Everybody there wants to main event WrestleMania and get those 750,000 dollar paydays. Nobody in the indies dreams about working a Bound For Glory main event or anything like that so TNA needs to stick with the desperate workers whilst WWE can cherry pick the very best in the world.

You keep bringing this up, but this is actually what tna's been doing during the hogan/bischoff era. Throughout that time we've had wwe rejects in the main event while tna originals and indy darlings jobbed to them.
I would seriously like to know what you think is the reason that caused tna to go into the down turn they are in now?

[SOR]

Dec 23, 2013 17:54:04 GMT -5 Glitch said:

Dec 22, 2013 12:44:23 GMT -5 SOR said:

People always say this type of thing and it's very easy to say it but a lot harder to do it.

First of all, TNA is an international promotion which means you can't just fire their bread and butter guys like Sting, Hardy, Angle etc and replace them with independent guys. So many people would tune out entirely and TNA would lose popularity and ultimately money. Guys like Roode, Daniels, Joe etc are the ones who need to be replaced by rising independent stars.

Second of all, It's a lot harder to find good talent then you guys think. A lot of you have the "Sign good wrestlers" mentality but that doesn't work for an international company. TNA is looking for guys with a look, guys who can work and guys who can be entertaining week in and week out and ultimately draw people to watch or pay to see them. Being a "good wrestler" isn't going to get you that.

Thirdly, A lot of you seem to have the mentality of "TNA should be looking to indy darlings" but again, it isn't viable. The reason? Lets hypothetically say Chris Hero is making 60,000 dollars a year for everything he does from booking fee to seminar to dvd cut to whatever. lets say TNA approach him and ask what he wants to sign with them. What do you think is going to happen? Hero is going to ask for probably around 90,000 a year if not more so he can keep the same lifestyle.

Now think about this, Hero probably wants a 3 year deal and TNA would want him for that as well. That 90,000? It's suddenly a contract worth 270,000 dollars. TNA signs Hero, the smarks rejoice but lets say things don't work out and Hero doesn't get over with a TV audience and he flops. Then what? Then TNA has wasted almost a quarter of a million dollars on a talent that nobody cares for.

That's the situation with most of these indy darlings. They're big enough deals to make big money on the indies so they want a lot to sign exclusively with a company. They're unproven at a national level though so it's a huge risk.

As for my opinion on this:

TNA needs to focus on WWE rejects and complete unknowns. WWE rejects like Bateman don't have other options and aren't big enough deals to work indy dates week to week so they're going to sign for a lot less then a guy who is making 1000-1500 working all the top indies. These guys already have training from the best company in the world, they know how to work the cameras, the audience etc etc so go with them.

As for the unknowns, TNA should send a scout out to scout completely obscure independents. I am talking about your local flea market wrestling card. If you see a guy with some potential and a great look then sign him to a miniscule deal and work with him. Ultimately these guys should be in their 20's.

Apart from that of course TNA should remain on the look out for big releases from the WWE but WWE is generally holding onto their talent these days so that is definitely easier said then done.

Oh and as for NXT, the reason they can attract all this great talent is because they are WWE. Everybody there wants to main event WrestleMania and get those 750,000 dollar paydays. Nobody in the indies dreams about working a Bound For Glory main event or anything like that so TNA needs to stick with the desperate workers whilst WWE can cherry pick the very best in the world.

You keep bringing this up, but this is actually what tna's been doing during the hogan/bischoff era. Throughout that time we've had wwe rejects in the main event while tna originals and indy darlings jobbed to them.
I would seriously like to know what you think is the reason that caused tna to go into the down turn they are in now?

TNA is in the toilet because they tried to become bigger way too quickly.

They should never have gone on the road without testing it out more. They've lost millions that's why they're in their current state.

[Red Impact]

Dec 22, 2013 12:44:23 GMT -5 SOR said:

People always say this type of thing and it's very easy to say it but a lot harder to do it.

First of all, TNA is an international promotion which means you can't just fire their bread and butter guys like Sting, Hardy, Angle etc and replace them with independent guys. So many people would tune out entirely and TNA would lose popularity and ultimately money. Guys like Roode, Daniels, Joe etc are the ones who need to be replaced by rising independent stars.

Second of all, It's a lot harder to find good talent then you guys think. A lot of you have the "Sign good wrestlers" mentality but that doesn't work for an international company. TNA is looking for guys with a look, guys who can work and guys who can be entertaining week in and week out and ultimately draw people to watch or pay to see them. Being a "good wrestler" isn't going to get you that.

Thirdly, A lot of you seem to have the mentality of "TNA should be looking to indy darlings" but again, it isn't viable. The reason? Lets hypothetically say Chris Hero is making 60,000 dollars a year for everything he does from booking fee to seminar to dvd cut to whatever. lets say TNA approach him and ask what he wants to sign with them. What do you think is going to happen? Hero is going to ask for probably around 90,000 a year if not more so he can keep the same lifestyle.

Now think about this, Hero probably wants a 3 year deal and TNA would want him for that as well. That 90,000? It's suddenly a contract worth 270,000 dollars. TNA signs Hero, the smarks rejoice but lets say things don't work out and Hero doesn't get over with a TV audience and he flops. Then what? Then TNA has wasted almost a quarter of a million dollars on a talent that nobody cares for.

That's the situation with most of these indy darlings. They're big enough deals to make big money on the indies so they want a lot to sign exclusively with a company. They're unproven at a national level though so it's a huge risk.

As for my opinion on this:

TNA needs to focus on WWE rejects and complete unknowns. WWE rejects like Bateman don't have other options and aren't big enough deals to work indy dates week to week so they're going to sign for a lot less then a guy who is making 1000-1500 working all the top indies. These guys already have training from the best company in the world, they know how to work the cameras, the audience etc etc so go with them.

As for the unknowns, TNA should send a scout out to scout completely obscure independents. I am talking about your local flea market wrestling card. If you see a guy with some potential and a great look then sign him to a miniscule deal and work with him. Ultimately these guys should be in their 20's.

Apart from that of course TNA should remain on the look out for big releases from the WWE but WWE is generally holding onto their talent these days so that is definitely easier said then done.

Oh and as for NXT, the reason they can attract all this great talent is because they are WWE. Everybody there wants to main event WrestleMania and get those 750,000 dollar paydays. Nobody in the indies dreams about working a Bound For Glory main event or anything like that so TNA needs to stick with the desperate workers whilst WWE can cherry pick the very best in the world.

Hypothetically, if a guy is making 60K a year, I don't think it'll take 90K to get him. You don't automatically jump to a new job and get 1.5x the salary, especially if you were just tossed by the only company that migh be able to outbid the one you're talking to. More realistically, if you could beat a guy's indie salary by as little as 5K a year, he's probably going to listen to what you have to offer.

But I also think it'd benefit TNA to rethink the way it signs new (ie: new to WWE/TNA tv) talent. I think a better solution would be to not make the new guys exclusive at all. Sign them on a short term deal for, say, six sets of tapings. Lock them in for those dates, but let them work indies the rest of the time. They shouldn't be trying to be those guys' sole annual salaries. The big contracts that do require more exclusivity should be reserved for the guys like Angle, Anderson, Styles, and so forth. Everyone else in the midcard and below should be on non-exclusive contracts that could turn into a bigger ones if the crowd responds well enough.

Basically, I think you could slash the roster by half or so and still use the other guys, but don't try to be the only promotion they perform for. Two taping dates a month for three months before rethinking the contract should mean that you don't have to pay the guys 5 figures a year, you let them earn the rest on the indies and, if TNA is touring in the area, they can wrestle on the house show circuit while there. If TNA needs to add talent on a house show, they can have local guys fill up a few matches against the big guys for slightly higher than they'd make normally.

[Can you afford to pay me, Gah]

Dec 23, 2013 20:43:20 GMT -5 SOR said:

Dec 23, 2013 17:54:04 GMT -5 Glitch said:

You keep bringing this up, but this is actually what tna's been doing during the hogan/bischoff era. Throughout that time we've had wwe rejects in the main event while tna originals and indy darlings jobbed to them.
I would seriously like to know what you think is the reason that caused tna to go into the down turn they are in now?

TNA is in the toilet because they tried to become bigger way too quickly.

They should never have gone on the road without testing it out more. They've lost millions that's why they're in their current state.

It's not that going on the road was a bad idea,because ten years of being around is plenty of time for a company to be road ready. The problem is TNA lack marketing. They lack having a product that people give a crap to spend money on and that has to do with booking. They have no idea how to draw in fans to spend money. The fact that the average TNA show ticket cost more then a WWE TV Ticket. There's a problem there. Had TNA spend the whole ten years on better marketing and coming on with a product fans are not labeling as a joke or WWE lite or WCW 2.0 Which that what TNA as become over the years and thats not having a good reputation.

[Glitch]

Dec 23, 2013 20:43:20 GMT -5 SOR said:

Dec 23, 2013 17:54:04 GMT -5 Glitch said:

You keep bringing this up, but this is actually what tna's been doing during the hogan/bischoff era. Throughout that time we've had wwe rejects in the main event while tna originals and indy darlings jobbed to them.
I would seriously like to know what you think is the reason that caused tna to go into the down turn they are in now?

TNA is in the toilet because they tried to become bigger way too quickly.

They should never have gone on the road without testing it out more. They've lost millions that's why they're in their current state.

But their ratings were already down and they were already bleeding money before going on the road. In fact touring, seemed like a gamble to fix this.