WWE executive Bruce Prichard recently appeared on Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes’ podcast, where he reflected on the most valuable advice he ever received in the wrestling business.
Prichard credited legendary Houston promoter Paul Bosch with instilling in him the importance of listening to the paying audience above all else.
“Paul listened to the audience… You’re listening to the people that are buying the tickets, and that’s key,” Prichard explained. “Listen to the folks that are buying tickets and watching the television show, not the ones that just want to critique it. They will tell you what’s working and what isn’t working.”
Prichard elaborated that many in wrestling fall into the trap of believing they know better than the fans, but Bosch’s philosophy was the opposite. “You can either take the opinion of, ‘Well, I know better than them,’ or you can have that open mind and say, ‘Wow, I didn’t look at it like that.’ If you listen, the audience will always help you and tell you what’s working and what isn’t working. You just have to be honest enough and open enough to listen. I think that was an important thing that Paul did.”
Bosch’s approach wasn’t limited to what happened inside the arena, either. Prichard recalled that Bosch actively engaged with the audience before and after shows to find out what they wanted to see.
“Paul loved to come out and talk to the people buying tickets, find out what they were into. ‘What do you like? Who’s your favorite? Really? Why? Who do you not like? Is there anybody out there you’d like to see?’ He would listen, and then he would say, ‘Okay, hey, Bruce, find this guy,’ or whatever. Then we would go in search of that. So you would bring the audience what they were clamoring for.”
Prichard added that sometimes the goal is to frustrate or anger the fans—but only in the right way. “Our job is to piss them off at times, too. If you piss them off, that’s good—you just don’t want to piss off the audience in the wrong way. Listening is the best advice I’ve ever gotten from the most successful people before me.”
Fans can check out the complete podcast below:
