Apply the "Marvel Method"
In ye olden days of comic books, you had a "lead creator" on a title. That person, if a writer, wrote the script and gave it to the artist to draw. If that person was an artist, they drew the comic, and gave it to the writer to script. This method was known as the "sucky" method. Stan Lee came up with a method more akin to movie production. The artist and the writer working together to come up with a singular vision of art and writing. Did it work? Ever heard of the Fantastic Four, X-Men, Spiderman, Iron Man, The Avengers or basically any non-DC comics still being produced today? Stan Lee either created them or the creators were inspired by Stan Lee.
What's that got to do with wrestling? Booking would be done between the wrestlers involved and the writers. Wrestlers would contribute their own vision of the characters they are portraying, while the writers guide that vision into coherent storylines. What would result would be a product that all the players were emotionally invested in. Very few people, writers or wrestlers, would suggest, "I'm thinking I have an affair with an octogenarian who gives birth to a hand!" And very few people would respond to that with, "BRILLIANCE! Do you think she'll work topless?!" When you have a single entity responsible for these things, insanity slips through easier.
Included in this should be a novel concept to the wrestling business... rehersal. I don't mean stepping through the high spots of a match. I mean, actually running the whole show once through for practice. This allows you to re-work a spot, tighten up weak promo lines, and just see what is and isn't working. The money you spend on a rehersal will absolutely show up on TV. It is the single cheapest way to increase production value.
Do Not Compete
There is no way any promotion is going to compete with WWE without the major financing that Vince McMahon has spent a lifetime building. This isn't "unfair". Go look at Wrestlemania 1, and remember that Vince bet the promotion on that event. That represents every dime in the (then) WWF. It looks like a really well-attended regional show. As we all know, Vince was successful, and the production values and slickness of WWE shows continue to improve today.
You can't start there, not even if you're TNA and Panda Energy is paying the bills. You either come off looking like an inferior copy (if you have the money), or a poor-man's version of a much better product. The secret is to not even compete. Just assume that you're not in the same business as WWE.
Take advantage of your low-production values. ECW (the original version) was highly successful doing this, until they showed up as a blip on the WWE radar, and suddenly thought they were big time. You're not going to have "millions and millions" of fans across the world. Maximize the attention you give to your "thousands and thousands" or even "hundreds and hundreds". With a smaller fan-base, the personal interaction opportunities are incredible. You will establish a bond with your core fans that will still be there when and if you make it to the big time.
Secondly, find a market segment the WWE (or TNA) is not even serving. I am aware there are "extreme" promotions out there, and there's never going to be another ECW. However, my plan for a wrestling promotion would run like this:
Run the show very late-night on the weekends. Maybe even purchase an informercial slot to air it in, rather than a TV deal. Put some edge into it, some blood, some violence, up around the level of the attitude era. Make it very "underground"... an almost "elite" thing that one friend passes along to another; "Hey, man, did you see that wrestling show? It was on at like, 2 in the morning. I was baked as hell, and I caught it flipping channels. This dude just totally wailed on this other dude for like, 10 minutes with a chair and a hammer. And when his chick tried to stop him, he popped her right in the eye! It was fucking sweet!" Keep the merch and the air schedule online, and try having people cut promos over Twitter and FB. You're going to pick up the key demographic that the Cena types are missing.
Don't let other companies make your hiring decisions for you. It doesn't matter that some upper-card guy from WWE is possibly getting future-endeavored. Do you really need him? Or, are you creating a situation where you're going to take time away from your own guy you've been developing over the course of months or years to make a hole for a "ready-made superstar"? Jeff Hardy, anyone?
Reward Egos, Punish Egoists
There's nothing wrong with a big ego. Actually, it's desirable. When two wrestlers step through the ropes, you WANT them to believe that they are about to make the world forget about Savage/Steamboat. When a guy picks up a mic to cut a promo, you WANT him to believe he's about make everything the Rock ever said look like the ramblings of The Great Khali. These guys who go out and act like they're capable of carrying the company on any given night need to be rewarded with more match time, more mic time, more time to do what they do best.
The problem comes from egoists. People who believe that the only reason the company is successful is because they stepped through the ropes or cut that promo. These people can not be tolerated, and it needs be communicated to them swiftly and clearly that there is no room for that. It doesn't matter if the guy is legitimately the second coming of Hulk Hogan, and single-handedly sold out the building. If you let that guy go, you're going to end up indebted to him and lose control of the company. Don't believe me? Did you see the last Nitro?
Don't Use the Product to Punish
So, you have a guy who got in some trouble; a bar fight or a drug bust. Burying him on TV or using him in a stupid gimmick or angle isn't punishing him. He's still on TV drawing a check. You're punishing the audience and it's wrong. Your job isn't to raise children, it's to promote a wrestling show. If the actions of an employee harm the company, then suspend or fire them. Don't think you're going to be teaching them some grand life lesson by making them wrestle a valet in a bra-and-panties match.
Live in the 21st Century
Professionalism and the needs of the company need to come first. Sorry to say, that means that the widow of the guy everybody loves won't be appearing on TV. It means the former champion who's fallen on hard times isn't going to be brought in as a manager. By all means, help people when and where you can, but you have to put the good of the organization first.
This extends to doing business as well. The business world is not an extension of the wrestling world. No matter how much dirt the "other guys" have done you, you can't hold grudges to the detriment of your company. And "that's the way it's always been done" should be a banned term during any business discussions. Vince McMahon was successful for this exact reason, he ignored every convention in the wrestling business up to that point. The other promoters sat around complaining about him instead of innovating, which is why you could have an AWA show in my living room now days. Innovate. Innovate. Innovate. This is the weakest area of the wrestling business. Do NOT hire old hands and veteran wrestlers to book, write and promote. Hire wrestling fans and people with actual talent. Don't be afraid to make changes.
