Vince McMahon To Make Major Changes to Boost the Ratings

Vince McMahon addressed the declining WWE ratings at the company’s investor conference call.

“We’re doing everything we can. Better writing and better execution,” McMahon said.

Vince McMahon does not want to be hung up just on ratings on the WWE Network, since the audience is viewing the show on other platforms. Those views do not count as WWE viewership ratings.

Why is WWE losing viewership?

The company has observed a decline in their overall ratings during the recent past. 2020 was the year when the viewership took a downward spiral.

Both SmackDown and Raw could not compete with their previous ratings. There were days when AEW’s Dynamite reeled in higher viewership than WWE NXT.

The other reasons WWE is losing viewership is because of the repetitive content. While the company might have a good creative team working backstage, if the Superstars dislike the lines they are given, they will not deliver the best content.

The audience connects with the Superstars and not the company. Often, Superstars have claimed that the writers do not take their suggestions into account. This bit doesn’t sit well with the fans since they feel that their favourite pro-wrestler is not getting the importance they deserve.

Therefore, when Superstars are switching companies, the audience are switching channels too.

A point to note here: the Superstars do not lose fan following, even if the company is losing viewership. 

Vince McMahon can focus on other aspects

The company can make improvements in current situations instead of just focusing on future storylines. For example, since Seth Rollins moved to SmackDown, the storyline between Rollins, Murphy, and The Mysterio family took a backseat.

Next, the audience has been constantly criticizing WWE for putting Lana through the table at every WWE Raw episode for the past two months. Mr. McMahon can listen to the audience and give them what they want before trying to make newer storylines.

Another space where the company can get back on the good books of the audience is by not going after Superstars and their lives outside WWE. The company has passed different policies that have stopped the various income streams that Superstars have outside WWE. The fans did not appreciate this move at all.

Read More: Fans Express Frustration after WWE Bans its Superstars’ Twitch Accounts

WWE must focus on what works for the audience

WWE definitely hit the jackpot with the Roman Reigns-Jey Uso, Bayley-Sasha Banks, and Drew McIntyre-Randy Orton storylines. The audience naturally received these and accepted them.

Read Next: Jey Uso to Face the Consequences of His Loss to Roman Reigns on SmackDown

These are the type of storylines that WWE and Vince McMahon should focus on. The upcoming Survivor Series 2020 will reel in viewership since one of the main events is Roman Reigns vs. Randy Orton. The company should consider Reigns vs. McIntyre too, since this is a dream match the audience has been hinting towards.

WWE should try to change the Retribution storyline, too. This was doing well until the members revealed themselves and the audience lost interest. It might help if WWE reintroduces the suspense element to the storyline.

The company can do a lot to improve their ratings apart from just trying to create better storylines. Let us know in the comments if you can think of other ways.