Why Is the UFC Marketing Itself Like the WWE Did Back in the Day?
As it turns out, they both understand that storytelling is king
It’s no secret that fighting has always been about entertainment.
From the swords-and-sandals battles of the Colosseum to the bare-knuckle boxing days of 18th century England, the end goal of fighting has always been about getting people to sit up and pay attention.
To quote the great MMA promoter, Dana White,
“Fighting is in our DNA. In one corner of the world, if I throw a ball in a basket, it means I win the NBA — in another corner it doesn’t mean anything. But if I punch you in the face, it ALWAYS means something — anywhere in the world.”
Everybody understands fighting. It resonates within us at the deepest, most primal level of our being. Long before someone thought to kick an inflated pigs bladder into a net and call it scoring a goal, people have made a sport out of exchanging fisticuffs.
This makes fighting potentially the most marketable sport in the world.
Solving the Eternal Problem
Without context, a fight will never be anything more than two men in their underwear hitting each other.
The eternal problem of the fight game, and the entertainment industry in general, is that it’s hard to get viewers to actually care. After all, the result of a fight or the ending of a TV show has no bearing on their day-to-day lives.
Over the decades, many solutions were implemented in an attempt to solve this problem.
That’s one reason why titles are created. They give the illusion of weight, of importance. A shiny gold belt yells, Something monumental taking place, folks!
That’s also why gambling on fights is actively encouraged. It’s extremely profitable and it gets gamblers emotionally invested. The result of a bout has real-life ramifications now — you could win or lose money! Unless you’re a serious gambler, though, the amount is usually negligible. Most people do it for the thrill. It’s all psychological.
However, these solutions, although good, aren’t game-changing.
What makes the UFC and WWE so successful is that they both understand one fundamental truth about marketing — a truth that will help you understand not just how to sell fights, but how to market anything at all.
The best way to get people to care is to make them emotionally invested. And the best way to get people emotionally invested is by telling stories.
The Power of a Good Tale
“If we want to change the world, we have to go back to a time when warriors would gather around a fire and tell stories.” — Paulo Coelho
Stories are captivating for a reason.
Homo Sapiens is a social animal, and like it or not, we all have a deep craving to feel connected to something other than ourselves — something bigger than ourselves. Stories fulfil our fundamental human need to pass on and receive knowledge.
Storytelling is also an essential but often overlooked part of marketing. Done well, it is one of the most powerful ways to build your brand. Stories can take your target audience on an emotional journey that is simply not available through any other medium and leave them coming back for more. Stories create culture, shape perceptions, and have the power to breathe life — genuine life — into your business.
Storytelling in the Fight Game
If you’re a long-time MMA fan like me, you likely know the early beginnings of the UFC. The company was a whopping $40 million dollars in debt when it launched a reality TV series called The Ultimate Fighter (TUF). It was a last-ditch, Hail Mary attempt to get people to pay attention to the sport. If the series failed, the UFC would’ve gone bankrupt, and the fight game as we know it would be very, very different.
But it didn’t fail.
The Ultimate Fighter was a massive success. The show created millions of new MMA fans and revitalized a dying company. UFC President Dana White states this was the single most pivotal moment in the history of the UFC, and it’s hard to disagree.
So what did they do right that was so powerful? Intentionally or not, the producers of TUF stumbled upon a two-step formula. A winning formula. A formula as powerful as it is simple.
1. Use Personal Stories to Get People to Care
What was groundbreaking about The Ultimate Fighter was that the show chose to go behind the scenes and depict not just the fight itself but the life of each individual fighter.
The cameras followed several aspiring UFC fighters as they bunked together in the same house. Over the span of several months, viewers got to watch the fighters go about their day. They watched how hard they train. What they eat. They watch them talk to each other about life, their girlfriends back home, their childhoods growing up.
They saw that these fighters were people with hopes and dreams, joys and sorrows. In a flash, all pre-conceived notions were torn down. They weren’t just topless, faceless barbarians fighting in a cage anymore. These fighters were people just like them.
They got emotionally invested.
The storytelling was so good that the fights almost took a back seat to the drama in the house (not that the fights weren’t any good, who can forget Forest Griffin vs Stephan Bonnar 1?). It was reality TV at its finest.
What the UFC realized with TUF 1, the WWE had already perfected into an art form. Pro wrestling is arguably harder to promote than real fights. The story arc becomes even more important when the match is scripted. Fans really have to care about the demise of the “heel” and the rise of the “babyface.”
Without the drama and the backstory, a pro wrestling match is little nothing more than guys in tights and masks pretend-fighting.
Nobody wants to see that.
2. Give Your Product Away for Free
“Jab. Jab. Jab. Right Hook.”— Gary Vaynerchuk
This one may be hard for you to wrap your heads around. It took me some time to understand, too.
I first heard this philosophy from Gary V, and since he can explain it far better than I can, the quote is as follows:
“My entire business philosophy pretty much revolves around the jab jab jab right hook method. Jabs are the value you provide your customers with: the content you put out, the good things you do to convey your appreciation. And the right hook is the ask: it’s when you go in for the sale, ask for a subscribe, ask for a donation.
You gotta throw some jabs before you throw your right hook.”
— Gary Vaynerchuk blog
When the first TUF came out, it was free to watch on TV. In the golden age of pay-per-view, this was a bold decision.
It was also a stroke of genius, a calculated move that exposed millions of viewers to the new sport of MMA and made them die-hard fans as a result.
The same goes for WWE. When I was a kid, I spent many a good hour wondering what The Rock was cooking. Seeing The Undertaker tombstone pile-drive some poor bloke to oblivion never got old. Chances are if you’re a 90s kids like me, you grew up watching WWE too. And chances are you watched it on TV, just like me.
The magic of this formula is that the jab creates new fans and the right hook funnels them towards the sale. WWE creates new fans by giving away their product on TV, building anticipation, and funneling them to their paid events like Summerslam and Wrestlemania.
The UFC created millions of new fans through free TV such as TUF and UFC on FOX, then funnels them to their pay-per-view events and monthly subscription Fightpass.
There’s a reason why they’re both incredibly successful billion-dollar businesses.
The formula works.
In Summary
“If you know the Way broadly, you will see it in all things.”
— Miyamoto Musashi, the Book of Five Rings
We’re not a huge global company as they are, but the same principles apply.
For example, one of the main reasons why I’m writing on Medium is to build a fanbase. There’s nothing wrong with giving people value. If they like your work, they’ll offer you value in return.
Win-win.
In summary, to market better, remember to:
- Use personal stories.
- Give your product away for free.
Step 1. will create real, die-hard fans. Step 2. will expand your reach beyond your wildest imaginations.
And isn’t that what marketing is all about?