TUI UNIVERSITY
Module 1 Case Assignment
MKT501 – Strategic Marketing
23 January 2012

1. Briefly describe Harley Davidson’s traditional targeting and positioning strategy.
Harley Davidson is a company that has been around since 1903 and in that time has got quite accustomed to dealing with the changes in markets, which are driven by the changes in people. Having a good “tough image” and great marketing plan has kept the US motorcycle king afloat for over 100 years and will undoubtedly, as it attracts new riders, will be around for many years to come. The Hollywood scripts and early magazines depicting the young, wild motorcycle rider became less and less a reality in the late 1990’s, according to Motorcycle Industry Council statistics. Even in the 1990s, riders became more mainstream. The typical heavyweight segment motorcyclist in 2009 was male, 42 years old, married, and had a college degree. A motorcycle industry’s census showed that there were more riders, more households, more women and more young buyers. Since 2003, the number of motorcycles owned and used in America grew 19 percent to approximately 10.4 million. That is a 58 percent increase from 1998 (6.6 million). The average income of the motorcyclist in 2009 had more than tripled since 1980 ($17,500). In 2009, motorcycle owner household income averaged $59,290 while the U.S. average was $50,233. Riders are also much older. The typical rider was interested in the outdoors. In surveys about their other interests besides motorcycling, fishing and hunting topped the list. The baby boomers that had experienced Harley-Davidson in their youth are expected to decrease their demand for motorcycles as they age. The problem for Harley-Davidson is that it does not produce the kinds of motorcycles which are increasingly in demand in our time. To remain competitive, Harley-Davidson has to change