10 Moves WWE Must Make To Regain Popularity
1. Reward Talents That Get Over
Zack Ryder got over. After The Rock's first match in 7 years at the 2011 Survivor Series, do you remember what fans were chanting? In Madison Square Garden, no less, fans were chanting...
"We Want Ryder!"
That's right folks, the walking orgasm for most of WWE's brass that is The Rock stood in the center of the ring and heard cheers for Zack Ryder instead of him. If that's not considered "being over" and worthy of some support (read: push) then I don't know what is.
So how did WWE help Ryder in growing his popularity? They had John Cena steal his girlfriend then they put Zack in a wheelchair, cuckolded him and literally shoved him off a cliff. That is a B-U-R-I-A-L at its finest and its demoralizing ramifications are still being felt by many WWE talents today.
Plenty of superstars that were on the path of superstardom have since left the company because the company gave them no support. In fact, in many cases (like with Ryder), the company actively worked against the talent's success.
For WWE to regain popularity, it needs to recognize that stars can come from anywhere. WWE may not understand the reactions all the time, but that shouldn't matter. What matters is for WWE to present the talents that fans want (and will pay) to see.