Post by Deleted on Jul 18, 2022 18:38:14 GMT -5
I keep seeing stuff from wrestling-related accounts about the need for the likes of WWE and AEW to draw in the casual fans. I’m sure I’ve heard similar stuff from comic publishers, although they don’t use the term “casual fans”.
I wonder, how important is drawing in the casual fan? Is it a pipe dream? And is there a risk that trying to cater to the casual fan/reader could alienate the hardcore fans/readers?
It would seem utterly impossible for any entertainment-based institution to be all things to all people. How do you please everyone? It seems to be a pipe dream. If I was handed the “keys” to a publisher, movie franchise or wrestling company, I think I’d need to sit down and relax if someone said, “Draw in the casual fans.”
I’m not saying an institution *shouldn’t* do it, but why should any company wish to draw in casual folk?
I do understand that they need to, whether it be a TV show attracting eyes every week, or a comicbook publisher wanting some new blood. Even the most hardcore comic fan will one day pass away, but this topic comes from a place of concern. I see a LOT of comments about attracting the casual fan, but I don’t seem to see ANY comments about retaining the hardcore fans/readers. It’s as if they aren’t as important. Yes, I know attracting new blood will increase sales, ratings, PPV buyrates and the like, but it does seem a risky venture. Just my opinion, of course.
In any endeavour, I’m not sure I’d want to think too hardly about attracting casual fans because, by definition, casual can mean superficial, fleeting, shallow, etc. Why attract John Smith to your product if he might be gone within a couple of months, on to his next venture/interest? Why not keep Jane Smith, who has been consuming your product for 10, 15 or even 20 years? In the case of, say, WWE, they should be thinking about me, who has watched it since I was a kid (I properly started watching it in 1989), instead of chasing the “mythical” casual fan.
I’m not saying I am more important. That isn’t true. But I’d say my loyalty deserves a bit more reward, in how WWE executes its storylines, than in any storylines proposed that will chase the “mythical” casual fan. Surely the long-term, loyal fans might just deserve to be catered to, if only a tad (I realise my argument about a hobby attracting new blood contradicts that).
I don’t really have a dog in the fight with comics, as I lost interest in Marvel a while ago (too many big events, reboots, etc). I have retained a mild interest in DC. I won’t be around forever - no-one will - but as with my WWE example, there was a time when I felt that the Big Two should have been thinking more about its long-term audience. What do I mean by that? Well, things like renumbering. Members like mrp have succinctly and sincerely explained the business side of that - and I get it - but there’s a part of me that wishes the likes of Marvel weren’t off chasing the “mythical” casual fan, who will buy that hundredth ‘first issue’, not when loyal readers like myself liked high numbers in our comics, not that numbering is the be-all and end-all. Of course, a casual fan can become a hardcore fan, that is possible.
People on this forum, such as mrp, have a better understanding of the business side of it that I do, so I suppose that my emotive thoughts aside, I’d ask anyone here the following questions:
1) How much, if any, effort should an entertainment company put into chasing the casual fan/reader?
2) How should WWE/comic publishers/choose your own company balance the needs/desires of the long-term fan who has stuck with them for years and the potential £££s/$$$s of the hypothetical casual fan/reader?
I wonder, how important is drawing in the casual fan? Is it a pipe dream? And is there a risk that trying to cater to the casual fan/reader could alienate the hardcore fans/readers?
It would seem utterly impossible for any entertainment-based institution to be all things to all people. How do you please everyone? It seems to be a pipe dream. If I was handed the “keys” to a publisher, movie franchise or wrestling company, I think I’d need to sit down and relax if someone said, “Draw in the casual fans.”
I’m not saying an institution *shouldn’t* do it, but why should any company wish to draw in casual folk?
I do understand that they need to, whether it be a TV show attracting eyes every week, or a comicbook publisher wanting some new blood. Even the most hardcore comic fan will one day pass away, but this topic comes from a place of concern. I see a LOT of comments about attracting the casual fan, but I don’t seem to see ANY comments about retaining the hardcore fans/readers. It’s as if they aren’t as important. Yes, I know attracting new blood will increase sales, ratings, PPV buyrates and the like, but it does seem a risky venture. Just my opinion, of course.
In any endeavour, I’m not sure I’d want to think too hardly about attracting casual fans because, by definition, casual can mean superficial, fleeting, shallow, etc. Why attract John Smith to your product if he might be gone within a couple of months, on to his next venture/interest? Why not keep Jane Smith, who has been consuming your product for 10, 15 or even 20 years? In the case of, say, WWE, they should be thinking about me, who has watched it since I was a kid (I properly started watching it in 1989), instead of chasing the “mythical” casual fan.
I’m not saying I am more important. That isn’t true. But I’d say my loyalty deserves a bit more reward, in how WWE executes its storylines, than in any storylines proposed that will chase the “mythical” casual fan. Surely the long-term, loyal fans might just deserve to be catered to, if only a tad (I realise my argument about a hobby attracting new blood contradicts that).
I don’t really have a dog in the fight with comics, as I lost interest in Marvel a while ago (too many big events, reboots, etc). I have retained a mild interest in DC. I won’t be around forever - no-one will - but as with my WWE example, there was a time when I felt that the Big Two should have been thinking more about its long-term audience. What do I mean by that? Well, things like renumbering. Members like mrp have succinctly and sincerely explained the business side of that - and I get it - but there’s a part of me that wishes the likes of Marvel weren’t off chasing the “mythical” casual fan, who will buy that hundredth ‘first issue’, not when loyal readers like myself liked high numbers in our comics, not that numbering is the be-all and end-all. Of course, a casual fan can become a hardcore fan, that is possible.
People on this forum, such as mrp, have a better understanding of the business side of it that I do, so I suppose that my emotive thoughts aside, I’d ask anyone here the following questions:
1) How much, if any, effort should an entertainment company put into chasing the casual fan/reader?
2) How should WWE/comic publishers/choose your own company balance the needs/desires of the long-term fan who has stuck with them for years and the potential £££s/$$$s of the hypothetical casual fan/reader?
