Should they charge to get into the Impact Zone?

[Marty2Hotty]

I was reading some thoughts on crowd reaction in a few threads. I personally think the reaction on the most recent show was awesome and the impact zone is very lively. I do think they get a new variety of crowds often and some diehards that follow TNA religiously.

Now that TNA is more mainstream than they were back in 2002 (Asylum Days), do you think they should start charging a low fee to get into the Impact Zone. This may help as it will assure TNA that the paying customers are the ones that watch the show and get on television with their chants and reaction.

I'm thinking they can do the same with the Asylum and start with a $10 charge to get in. Better than letting people get in for free that don't even know the product, right?

 

[burnout4200]

It makes sense but I don't think it's possible. I believe that once you pay to get into the park all of the attractions are free. I couldn't see them making an exception for anything besides food.

 

[Y 2 Jake]

Why would I pay for a show that I've been going to for free for years? I'd just catch it on TV.

It's embarrassing when TNA have to give away tickets for Bound For Glory, let alone iMPACT!, which is probably what would happen. The place is hardly rammed even if it is free to get in.

 

[CKguy217]

I didn't know it was free to get in! Wow.
Yea, I would think charging a low admission cost...say...$10/person, would be a good idea. It would bring in some extra money that wasn't there before.

 

[Muffin Top Merkley]

TNA can't charge admission if they stay in Universal Studios.

Once you pay to enter the ground, you don't have to pay for anything else. So its not only Impact! that is free, everytime they have a PPV in Orlando, thats free too.

 

[samboisdead]

I dont think they are allowed to. Plus if you charged to get in their would be no crowd. Thats not a knock on TNA but this thing is inside an amusement park. 90% of the people that watch the show didnt go their with the intention of watching wrestling they just ended up doing it because it was free and they might get on t.v.. I honestly think for TNA to get main stream they will have to move out of the impact zone.

 

[Greenlight13]

It's always boggled my mind that they don't charge people to get in. I mean they're at Universal studios so can probably try and attract people outside their usual audience by saying "hey, come see this, you don't even have to pay" but nothing annoys me more than seeing people at wrestling shows that clearly have no idea what they're seeing.

From a business perspective it makes sense. Even if it's $10 a head they're going to be making a lot per taping session and for a company that needs a bit more money that seems a no-brainer.

The Orlando fans often seem a bit flat sometimes. Like I sit and watch and think wow, I wish I could see that in person and then I look into the crowd and a lot of the people are just stone-faced. Whenever I go to see TNA in the UK the entire crowd is electric, we love to see them over here and we give a better reaction than any American crowd I've seen (and also the biggest capacity crowd at a TNA event).

All in all that's a long-ass way of saying HELL YES THEY SHOULD CHARGE!

 

[Pedro08]

As has been stated before, I don't think they are allowed to charge. That being said, who wouldn't want to go see a free Impact taping or PPV if you have the oppourtunity. Most of the weekly audience are tourist so you hope that by getting a free taste of the product they become fans and tune-in when they go home.

I don't think charging would work. It can be very expensive to take a family to an amusement park. So to expect a family to shell out $40 for a family of 4 after spending money all day on food and souvenirs when there are free alternative available throughout the amusement park is unreasonable.

As a business decision, it makes sense to keep Impact tapings at Universal Studios for now and do house shows on the weekends. It's a slow build and it can be frustrating, especially for the hardcore fans. As the economy gets better and the company grows and the ratings increase then they can go out and do Impact tapings on the road.

The worse thing they could do is to start spending money in an attempt to grow too quickly. Remember TNA is owned by Panda energy and if it starts to become a liability, there is a chance that they could sell if off, much like AOL/Time Warner sold off WCW. It would most likely be bought up by the WWE and were back to being stuck with only one major wrestling company.

 

[Marty2Hotty]

I heard they have to pay $26,000 a month to lease the Impact Zone in Universal and they are not allowed to charge. That sucks.

I'm not their accountant or anything but I am curious if they can charge like Universal may charge for some exclusive rides. so if 4000 ppl go in one month ($10 each) that makes up the rent they pay.

I'm not sure if touring the show (travel, booking other arenas) will actually cost more to them or it'd be safer and more feasible to remain in Orlando. I'm not sure which will be cheaper or better.

I like the "look" of the impact zone. everytime they tour their PPV, they put a crappy set and have dull lighting, which actually makes the show look worse. Las Vegas looked nice, but that had like 200 people in there

 

[johnbragg]

They don't charge, and they run free shows at Universal Studios, because their tickets don't sell. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tna_bound_for_glory

Last year, for Bound for Glory, one of their biggest shows, they drew 4500 paid, 5500 total (websites quoting Wrestling Observer) or 5000 (wikipedia TNA Bound for Glory) to a building that holds 11000. In 2006 they got 3600 people into a 4500 seat building, in 2007 they put 4000 butts in 13000 seats near Atlanta. This year, for Bound For Glory they are going to a college gym that holds around 5000. I say this is smart--it looks so much better to fill a small building than it does to have a half-empty arena.

Three or four times a year, TNA has shown that they can pull out all the stops and put 5000 people in a building (mostly paid) in North America. They apparently drew 8000 people in Britain this January, though. http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/wrestling/article2171232.ece

If I'm TNA, I go ahead and find 4000-5000 seat venues in major North American metropolitan areas. I think they've proven that, in a good sized market like Detroit or Atlanta or Nashville they can find 4000-5000 fans to come out and see their product.
Right now, they are looking at about 50 TV tapings and 12 PPVs. I would get out of Orlando and into a different setting as often as possible.

Do you think that it would make sense, when they do a PPV "on the road", to run the next Impact taping or two in the same building the next night or two? Would people go two or three nights in a row? You'd have to make fans feel good about going to the PPV so that they want to come back the next night.

 

[Marty2Hotty]

wELL, they tried to go on the road like 8 times last year and many times they couldn't fill 4-5000 people. I went to a house show in Canada and they probably did below 1000. I think the ratings need to go up higher before they can start touring the show on a regular basis.

They have to see if it is feasible, if they're making enough back to make it a good decision. Since they have scaled back more out of orlando PPVs it seems as though the shows on the road are actuallly not returning enough for it to be feasible at this time.

The best thing they can do is increase the rating so more people will be aware of the product so that if they do tour, more people will show up. I guess they can't charge to go to the Impact Zone

 

[johnbragg]

But where were those house shows? If they were in small markets (less than 500,000, say), then I wouldn't expect them to fill 4000 seats. For TNA to fill a 4000 seat building in, say, Indianapolis, they pretty much have to get every big TNA and IWC fan within a 1-hour drive to come out and see the show. For a show in Bloomington, IN (not near Chicago or Indianapolis AFAIK), the fans just aren't there.

Put it this way--I expect that TNA could fill a 4000 seat college hockey gym in Metro Toronto without too much trouble. They may be able to fill one in Hamilton or Ottawa (500,000-1,000,000 each). Saskatoon (200-250,000) just isn't going to happen.

They should be able to figure out a rotation, going once a year to Nashville, Atlanta, Tampa, Detroit, Toronto, New York or Philadelphia. Go to Britain and to Australia. Especially if they cut down to 6 pay per views.

 

[Rated_R_Superstar2010]

i never knew that the impact zone was free, well kinda. but i thought u had to buy tickets just like a regular show. from the way it sounds it seams that u cant charge for it. this really just shows how second rate tna is. i think the would benefit from traveling like wwe does. not sure if they have the fan base to pull this off but i could see people showing up. since wrestling is only in each city maybe 2 or 3 times a year then i dont see why wwe fans would not go to a tna show to see some live wrestling

 

[Pedro08]

I think the problen TNA has with running shows in small arenas in big towns is the overhead cost, such as building rental and having to hire union workers to set everything up (and they would have to hire the union workers or the show won't go on). And if the show is less than a sell-out, they end up losing money.

That's why they are running regular house shows on weekends in smaller towns where the overhead cost are lower. Now it's up to TNA's PR and marketing dept. to get the word out to try to get the attendance at the shows over 1,000 people, which seems to be what they average. One of the problems I've read about in regards to the house shows is that TNA doesn't do a good job with promoting them and that's something that's got to change in order to grow the company.

 

[burnout4200]

The Impact Zone is alot larger advantage than everyone seems to be implying. The crowd isn't as lively as it could be. That's true, but the fact that it's a new crowd everytime is alot of exposure. People who haven't watched wrestling in years might get addicted again if they just happen to stumble upon a show while they're on vacation. Or current WWE fans might stumble upon a show and say "Wow, this is alot better than what The WWE is offering".

Amusement parks is a magnet for kids as well. Let's face it, when you reach a certain age you start to feel stupid wearing a wrestling shirt. I just threw out my old Sting shirts the other day and it made me want to cry (lol), but I know I'm never gonna wear them. Kids and teenagers wear the merchandise and talk their parents into buying it. Odds are even the teenagers are with mommy and daddy at the park. Also if you got money to spend on a vacation you most likely got money to spend on TNA.

Instead of building costs they get paid by the studio to put on the show. There isn't a gamble to it and there's no chance of losing money on a show production. TNA makes the majority of their revenue from Spike TV and Universal Studios. Merchandise and house shows is just extra cash to help the business grow. Any other wrestling promotion would kill to be in TNA's position.

A great step for TNA to make would be to move tapings to Fridays and Saturdays when Universal Studios is packed. I could see that doing wonders for the live crowd. With so many people in the park the die hard wrestling fans would make sure to be the first people in line. More events in bigger cities outside of The Impact Zone would be great exposure, but at this point it's still a gamble financially. They need to keep working on the television rating and work up to that slowly like they are right now.

 

[The Hiphopapotamus]

No. What would it achieve? The free Impact Zone does loads for them. It:

A)It Gets them a crowd for their Impact tapings.

Who wants to watch a show with barely anybody in a crowd. THe crowd adds to the apperance of the show. Psychologically, if you see more people in the crowd, there's more of an interest, a compellance, into watching. If other people are enjoying it, you might just too. If there are huge spaces and gaps, people automatically think "This is shit, noone's even watching".

The crowd also adds to the atmosphere of a show, which makes watching the show better. The first thing you notice when watching Impact that's different, besides the six sided ring, is the crowd. They're constantly chanting, clapping, and just generally making noise. They're saying "That was awesome" or "Let's go *name*". It just adds to the enjoyment of the product. It makes you feel you're almost there.

B)It gets people interested in the product.

So someone's in Universal Studios, they see TNA wrestling for free, figure they might check it out, then they enjoy it and start watching. This is a great thing for TNA business wise. More people will not only be in the crowd for TV, which I have already explained why it is good, but more people will start to watch, buy pay per views.

C)They get enough money from house shows.

I'm going to a house show in Dublin on Saturday, and I paid through the nose for 5th row seats. Why? Because they won't be live in Dublin for at least a year. They don't travel for tapings, so they don't have to worry about crowds not coming, so they can charge as much as they want, within reason, for the locals who would be grateful to just see AJ Styles in the flesh. If a crowd doesn't turn out to capacity, oh well, who's going to know.

So yeah, if you didn't catch that and just want a synopsis, they most definitely should not charge for their Impact tapings, while they are staying in Orlando.

 

[X]

I think the real question here is do you actually think people would even pay to get into the Impact Zone? Because I imagine very, very few would. If they charged to get in, they'd likely only be able to fill up maybe half of the already dismally small Impact Zone, which would obviously look pathetic on television (not that their crowds don't already look pathetic).

They aren't nearly ready to start charging for people to get into the Impact Zone yet. Not unless they want to purposely have less people in their crowds during TV tapings.

 

[samboisdead]

I heard they have to pay $26,000 a month to lease the Impact Zone in Universal and they are not allowed to charge. That sucks.

I'm not their accountant or anything but I am curious if they can charge like Universal may charge for some exclusive rides. so if 4000 ppl go in one month ($10 each) that makes up the rent they pay.

I'm not sure if touring the show (travel, booking other arenas) will actually cost more to them or it'd be safer and more feasible to remain in Orlando. I'm not sure which will be cheaper or better.

I like the "look" of the impact zone. everytime they tour their PPV, they put a crappy set and have dull lighting, which actually makes the show look worse. Las Vegas looked nice, but that had like 200 people in there

Its possible your right but I heard diffrent. I heard they actually get payed to be there by Universal. I thought they did pretty good in Nashville and i think if they were still there now it would be thriving but then again from what I understand Sting came there partly because they were in Orlando and several other guys I heard are their for the same reason so I guess its smart. i do think it hurts their show sometimes. I have seen them have a hot show several times with a boring crowd and my opinion is that the crowd makes the match. Anyway at least there they no they will never have to resort to WCW tactics and pay people to watch their show. Plus they always no they will have a crowd honestly I could see them going on the road and making a wrong stop and having like 3 people there for their taping. I live in J.C. Tennessee and they came here a few months back. The main event was Samoa Joe vs Styles. I went to the show and it was great but seriously there were like 25 people their.
One thing i really wish they would do though is make their PPVs look diffrent. I hate tuning into one of their PPVs and feeling like I am just watching Impact. Id actually like to see them get rid of the set and go old school with just a curtain and a walk way where the fans can reach the wrestlers like they used to. I think this would add class to their PPVs. Honestly do any of you guys tune in because they have a pretty set?
The main thing I think they need to do is go live though. Honestly I read the spoilers on the net and unless a particular match sounds good half the time I just skip it. Going live would solve this I no its expensive though so not sure if it makes buisness sense for them as I dont no what their books look like. Surely they could afford to do it at least once a month though that would be a nice start.
I also think they should cut back on PPVs as well since I hear several of their PPVs have lost them money. This way they would seem more important plus their creative team would have more time to build them up. Its not like their the WWE and draw 16 to 30000 people everytime they do a PPV so I am pretty sure dropping a few PPVs would actually make the company money. They also have even fewer guys than even WWE built up for the main event scene as well. Also if i was them I would make titles really important sense WWE does the opposite anymore and i would have long title reigns.
Last to the guy that said when you reach a certain age you cant wear a wrestling shirt anymore, I am 31 and college educated I work in the health field. I wear my wrestling shirts as proud as ever to me it is no diffrent than wearing a shirt of my favorite sports team. I still have my Dusty Rhodes shirt i got when I was 10 that shows Dusty holding 2 smoking guns and I have the baddest Road Warriors shirt you have ever saw lol. Nothing wrong with wrestling shirts if the guy entertains you and you love the sport wear your shirt proud. Might get a few laughs from people but come on quit being a sheep dont wear your clothes to impress others.

 

[CMCoke42381]

Sh**************t...Front Row ROH tickets are $50 or more a pop, so I dont see a issue with a $10 fee except for how the "fan" already paid to get in the park.

 

[Pedro08]

For those of you who say that charging $10 to see an Impact taping is no big deal, have you seen what someone has to pay just to get into Universal Studios? If you're a non-Florida resident, it's $73.00 in advance, $77.00 the day of. If you're under 10 years old, it's $63.00 in advance and $67.00 the day of. If you happen to be a Florida resident, it's $54.99 regardless of age.

So for a family of four with 2 kids older than 10 years old, it's $292.00 just to get in the park. Add to that food (a meal deal can be bought for $19.99 per person) and souvenirs, you're looking at well over $400.00. So I think you'll be hard press to find casual fans to shell out an additional $40 for a family of four when there are other attractions in the park that they have already paid for. You may get the die-hards to pay, but I just don't see the casual fan paying additional for it.

I'd be curious to find out how much the die-hards who always seem to be in the front row for the tapings pay. Do they get a season pass or what?

 

[samboisdead]

For those of you who say that charging $10 to see an Impact taping is no big deal, have you seen what someone has to pay just to get into Universal Studios? If you're a non-Florida resident, it's $73.00 in advance, $77.00 the day of. If you're under 10 years old, it's $63.00 in advance and $67.00 the day of. If you happen to be a Florida resident, it's $54.99 regardless of age.

So for a family of four with 2 kids older than 10 years old, it's $292.00 just to get in the park. Add to that food (a meal deal can be bought for $19.99 per person) and souvenirs, you're looking at well over $400.00. So I think you'll be hard press to find casual fans to shell out an additional $40 for a family of four when there are other attractions in the park that they have already paid for. You may get the die-hards to pay, but I just don't see the casual fan paying additional for it.

I'd be curious to find out how much the die-hards who always seem to be in the front row for the tapings pay. Do they get a season pass or what?

Good post. I dont think the most die hard fan ever would pay $332 to see a t.v. taping.

 

[Nature Boy]

I would probably say charge to get in.

$10 seems like a good amount.

If they are unable to charge at the Universal Studios then maybe they should consider taking Impact on the road.

However, I like the Impact Zone, it reminds me of the old ECW Arena.

But I would say charge to get in.

 

[Mordrid99]

Let me correct a few misconceptions. I actually live in Orlando and have been to the Impact Zone for both tapings and PPVs. You do not have to purchase a day pass at Universal to attend the tapings. The only expense is parking, which is 12 dollars per vechile. Seating is done by first come first serve basis. I have got there twice early enough to get front row seats. I will say that probaly 30% of the people at each taping are one time guests of the parks, but you do have a very loyal fan base in Orlando for TNA. My outlook is this. If you have a Univeral pass, whether it be a day pass or an annual pass, you should get in for free. If you do not, you pay 10 bucks.

 

[Pedro08]

Let me correct a few misconceptions. I actually live in Orlando and have been to the Impact Zone for both tapings and PPVs. You do not have to purchase a day pass at Universal to attend the tapings. The only expense is parking, which is 12 dollars per vechile. Seating is done by first come first serve basis. I have got there twice early enough to get front row seats. I will say that probaly 30% of the people at each taping are one time guests of the parks, but you do have a very loyal fan base in Orlando for TNA. My outlook is this. If you have a Univeral pass, whether it be a day pass or an annual pass, you should get in for free. If you do not, you pay 10 bucks.

Thanks for clearing that up. So is there a separate entrance if you're just going there for the tv tapings or do you go through the front gate and just tell them that you're just there for the taping. Based on what you're saying, I agree with your last statement, if you're a park guess, you shouldn't have to pay, but if you're just there for the tapings, $10 is reasonable.

 

[Mordrid99]

There is actually two ways to get into the Impact Zone. One is inside the Universal Studios park itself. The other is from the Universal City Walk, which is a free area that has stores and restruants.

I love the location of the Impact Zone being at Universal. During the PPV Sundays, I spend the day at the park and then go enjoy the PPV. It is in the heart of the Orlando area(unlike Disney), and for 12 bucks to park, it isnt a bad price (Disney costs nearly 20 to park and you have to walk a mile).

I will add this, while they dont cant charge, they do amazing with merchandise sales. People tend to spend more when they get in for free. Also, Universal Studios does a great job with free advertising for TNA. TNA really doesnt have a bad set up with Universal.