Gday guys I'm doing part time study and am doing an assignment that I'm struggling with. This week it's about Harley. Questions are from a marketing point of view, but as riders or fans, does anyone have any ideas they could share here? 1. From a customer perspective what do you perceive are H-Ds greatest weaknesses? 2. What new opportunities do you see for H-D in the near or distant future? Any ideas or thoughts are welcome and appreciated. Cheers, Stu

just get one , problem solved

Stu...got your assignment sorted.

 just write this.

"If they have to ask, they won't understand"

You owe me 23 beers if we ever meet....

HD's greatest weaknesses are price and they don't like to change (especially when it comes to features) with the times. If they dropped the price and welcomed new developments everyone would ride one...

stu the best study you could do is a life experience go buy a harley and all your questions will be answered.

Having owned a few motorcycles over the years, I consider myself an enthusiast, regardless of the brand. Infact, I had a ride on Saturday with my 72 year old father in law, me on my 2005 Softail Deluxe, and he on a 1951 Moto Guzzi Falcone, but that is another story. I will try and summarise a few of lifes experiences in a couple of lines!!! Harley Davidson have a great product. In terms of marketing that product, brilliant. Their target market, is 40 to 60 year old blokes, who plainly don't care that they are riding old technology. It is the buzz of the nostalgic look, the rumble and roar of the antiquated air cooled V Twin. Their greatest asset, is also their greatest liability!! When the baby boomers die off, who will they market their "old school" bikes to? They need to broaden their horizons, by introducing new products. I think they are on the right path with the V Rod and some of the "dark custom" bikes. Us old blokes, prefer the Softail/Chopper/Roadking style of bikes that we believe are timeless.
Opportunities.....Sometimes I think they take their customers for granted. Their customers are the most loyal, loving and trusting of the brand, but are treated with contempt... Walk into a Harley Dealer in Sydney, and see for yourself! Overpriced merchandise from China, Taiwan. Anything with HD on it is a bloody rip off. They need to focus on building brilliant machinery for a niche market. Not trying to outsell last years sales figures by 20%!!! Quality, not quantity. Lastly, dumping Buell was a huge mistake. Those young guys were doing their apprenticeships on Harley sportsbikes. In five or ten years they were going to graduate to a Dyna or Softail. I think it's called brand loyalty....Only my opinion!!

Thanks chaps, brilliant stuff so far

If anyone has any more ideas about what HDs greatest weaknesses are, or what you see as being the greatest opportunities for them in future, bring em on.

enforcer, i havent answered your questions yet so here we go:

1. Where do you come from................? Sydney. Mascot all my life
2. What course are you doing?...........? B Business at UTS, majoring in Advertising and Promotions Mgmt. Used to be an Accounting Major but was never any good at it, so I converted to the dark side of marketing. Ive been at UTS for so long, it feels like I'm part of the furniture
3. Have you considered going to a HD dealership to ask about their marketing strategies? I have been to my local at Alexandria, but out of personal interest and before this exercise. To be honest, i thought I'd get more natural answers out of actual riders rather than dealers - full respect to dealers and the knowledge they have, but riders have no agendas and are who i imagined i'd get most creativity from.

Thanks to everyone who has shared their thoughts.

Stu

Stu biggest weakness is that they are priced hi ..... all though look at the priceing of other nieche ? (sp) bike's ie BMW DUCATI MV AUGUSTA exceptional brands also priced high....

harleys are not like any other bike they are the original cruiser .....

i think the biggest draw is the mythology of the harley ..... and the "outlaw" biker lifestyle .... although some dont like being compared .... but like to dress like us

me i bought my harley cos well it suited the purpouse that i needed a bike for .... touring two up and doing a lot of k's ...

the ducati i had b4 was just not what ya want to do megga k's on it

stucarr.... have a look at this subject, might give you a little insight

www.hdforums.com.au/Default.aspx

Onya boys

Clearly there is an issue with price, with respect to the value that that sort of price demands. There are also some issues with customer service and knowledge on the ground (dealers).

And looks like there is an opportunity to start targeting the younger crowd.

Anyway, that's my wrap up from what you've given me.

Thanks for sharing all your thoughts and ideas.

Take care

Stu

Stu,
I reckon you're not a student at all!!! I think you a are a spy from Head Office, who's been given a mission to find out what the real consumers, the genuine enthusiast is doing/thinking at present. Harley Davidson is losing sales/revenue hand over fist, and, since announcing the sale of MV Agusta and Buell, have copped significant flack from their own. Perhaps Management (like most large companies), have their collective heads up their collective backsides, and do not want to face reality!!!!\
WISHFUL THINKING!!!!!!!!
Anyway, good luck champ, Marketing is a brilliant subject, and I am genuinely hoping HD reads these forums, as I want to keep on supporting them.

Some of the strengths...

Do not slash prices at the end of every model year. This destroys resale on many other brands of bikes.
Supply (particularly in Oz) is limited which also helps with appeal and resale value.
Manage to supply a bike that despite being expensive requires $$$ on gear to get it right and make it yours. This gear is hugely marked up. You are given a phone book like catalogue to shop from with a new bike.
The bikes retain a 'look' that has not changed a great deal over the years. Some people see this as failing to keep up with the times but I see it as a very smart marketing exercise. Firstly it helps keep up resale (see a theme yet?) and secondly makes the brand very identifiable.
 

Hope this helps

cheers
Surly