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Harley Davidson

Introduction
Harley Davidson began its operations in the early 1900s. From a small family owned company it turned out to be the success it is today, however it was not an
easy ride for Harley Davidson. There were tough times ahead: the company was one of two motorcycle companies in America who survived the great depression; during World War I the company was able to keep its business mainly because it sold its motorbikes abroad and for the military. In the 1950’s the company introduced new models, shifting its production and aiming at selling to civilians instead of the police and military.

Until the 1970’s and 80’s Harley Davidson was the market leader in the motorcycle industry. However with the arrival of faster and more technological advanced motorcycles from Asia, Harley Davidson began to lose its market share. Not having the technology to be able to compete with the cheaper motorcycles from overseas, Harley Davidson had to come up with a strategy to retain its costumers and gain new ones by focusing on other aspects of riding, and not only the motorcycles themselves.

By using some of the theories to us introduced in the book “Consumer Behavior” by Leon Schiffman and Leslie Kanuk, we shall analyze how Harley Davidson turned its operations and marketing strategies around in such a successful way. We shall also discuss the importance and how their changing of image played a role in acquiring new followers and how Harley Davidson caters the needs of their target group.

Question 1
Attitudes represent what we like and dislike with respect to a given object (e.g. a product, a brand, or a service) and help to direct our behavior. To aid in the success of their products, Harley Davidson has tried to change the consumers’ behavior by changing their attitude about the motorcycles.

For Harley Davidson owners, their attitude towards the brand itself does not change according to the situation they are in since their thoughts and feelings about the...