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[Bromebe]

trying to push the little street 500's

http://www.harley-davidson.com/content/h-d/en_US/home/motorcycles/2015-motorcycles/street/street-500.html

and convince all that Harley owners are not all like the ones that caused all the mess in waco

[Road Dad]

At this stage HD probably consider acquiring another competitor that plays in another space of the market. VW is not going to hold on to Ducati forever for example.

They are probably not going to attract young buyers to the current selection of bikes. I like riding an HD now at 50 but there is no way I wanted to been seen in one before I was 30.

[charles05663]

At this stage HD probably consider acquiring another competitor that plays in another space of the market. VW is not going to hold on to Ducati forever for example.

They are probably not going to attract young buyers to the current selection of bikes. I like riding an HD now at 50 but there is no way I wanted to been seen in one before I was 30.

They did that with Buell.  Then they killed it when Wendell took over and the market collapsed.  At least at some dealerships, Buell brought people into the showroom who were not looking at HD's.  You have to get them into showroom first.

I guess the flip side is if anyone bought a Buell they would find out how HD dealers operate and be turned off.

 

[Spiderman]

And I know A LOT about how they are built. Personally I would never even consider owning one. 

You could have fooled me. 

B B

[mark]

I agree the current line of HDs isn't going to appeal to younger riders, because of cost, styling, and shop labor rates.  HD made its bones on the baby boomers, who were at their financial sweetspot when HD had its resurgence.  Unfortunately, the boomers are aging away from riding and there aren't enough Gen Xers to fill the gap.  Buell was a good idea - except for the engine and the labor cost for repairs. 

Regarding Cadillac, they have pigeon-holed themselves as an "old man" car, no matter what they produce.  I'm afraid HD has put themselves in the same situation.

[grc]

When I'm in SoCal, I see young people driving expensive BMW's , Audi's and yes, $50,000 pickups. When I'm in Maine I see young people driving old Ford Escorts with rusting quarter and rocker panels. If they've got a pickup, it's at least 20 years old and the tranny slips, it burns oil and is holier than the Pope. So yeah, money is an issue in Maine. I suspect that it's an issue in more states than it's not. California is not real. Or actually it's very real depending on how you see the USA. If you believe there is still an active middle class then California is not a real place. If you believe  that there's the top and the bottom and nothing in between then California is your kinda place-- - - - provided you're on the top.
At the end of the day, H-D fails younger riders for two reasons. A) no sport bikes (crotch rockets) B) Price points.  If a 25 yr old with only a high school degree is lucky enough not to have fried his FICO score between 18 and 25 then he/she is going to buy a decent car. Maybe even a fancy pickup  (that gets repossessed before it's paid off cause nobody with only a HS diploma is going to be steadily employed for 6 years consecutively. That person is not gonna get a loan for a $20,000 motorcycle even if they don't want a crotch rocket.

B B

That one post right there nailed several things.  Thanks Brian.

Jerry

[Lone Rider]

Maybe some of the younger generation are getting too soft to ride?

[Road Dad]

Does not seem to hard.....

You could have fooled me. 
H
B B

[DesertHOG]

At Santa Fe Harley they seem to be finding some younger riders.

[Spiderman]

Does not seem to hard.....

We have rules of posting on the site newbie. You need to read them and respect them.
Maybe after you've been here a few years and know people in person you've earned the right to be rude on occasion but with 42 posts under your belt, you're pushing it. Read the site dude. You won't find people with 10,000 posts going after me personally because I question a post they make.

B B

[martys]

IMHO I think that the Marketing Department are missing something in their approach to getting younger riders interested in the brand.  The younger generation is easily swayed by the media.  That is why you no longer see cigarette adds on TV and it is frowned upon in films and TV shows, compared to years ago, in an effort to not sensationalize smoking.  The MOCO could be using these media opportunities to "gain" younger people's interest in the brand by using more product placement.  If their favorite video game character was always riding a Harley, if the actors on some of the Crime shows, or Doctor shows, or Comedy shows, were riding Harley's  it would bring that inspiration into the minds of these young people that "Riding a Harley is Cool" If the MOCO would spend more on product placement type advertising I think they would build a whole new culture of Harley rider's.


Marty

[Ironhorse]

As I said earlier, I believe time will correct all of this.

In my 20s  I rode Japanese sport bikes.  I know many of us here used to. Never thought about a Harley. About age 32, I bought a Heritage and was on my way. Now I find the thought of riding 400 plus miles all hunched over and scrunched on a sport bike so unappealing. Aging joints and ligaments tell me so. I just got back from the Ouray GTG, and at my age, (closer to 60), there is no way I could have ridden a sport bike through 4 Utah national parks, and then hiked trails. So when the current crop of 20 something "hipsters" get older, and maybe wiser, those still riding will become HDs target group. At that point it is up to the MoCo to find a way to lure them away from buying another comfortable touring bike like BMW, Goldwing, Victory or Indian. As for buying power, those  older riders who can afford it will buy new HDs. Those who can't will buy used HDs or used Goldwings, or BMWs.

All that said, there is something we HD riders can do, and that is invite owners of other brands to ride with us. Over the decades the attitude of "If you don't ride a Harley, than you ain't chit" has painted us all with a broad brush. That coupled with the stigma of reliability issues may be a factor in folks not wanting to buy an HD. The greatest marketing strategy lies not within colors, paint, and a engine that goes "potato,..potato,...potato. It lies within us, the flesh and blood riders. Once they see that we are closer to "Grandfathers Of Arthritis" than "Sons Of Anarchy", they may make their next bike a Harley.

Hey,....how'd I get on top this soap box?

[dayne66]

The MOCO's marketing department needs to hire more women to flash Harley riders.

[laylonlor]

i' got a cts v  600 hp and zr1 and a air plane i'm 70 yr old,..... and a 43 yr old babe ,...he he he, and getting older

[laylonlor]

you young wiper stampers, can t ride