Harley Davidson: Marketing Communication

Nowadays firms heavily invest on marketing communication to articulate contents they wish to transmit in order to sell products and services to specific targeted audiences.This communication is closely linked with the firm’s corporative strategy. Nevertheless, contrary to what people may think, the content of these messages are shared between both sides involved in this process, i.e., firms and customers.

Marketing communication

As several specialized sources report, in our today’s world it is no possible to think about customers just as passive receptors of marketing messages with no answer at all. Actually, customers are increasingly involved, not only as active messages’ receptors, but as consumers and builders of brands as well. Since

Harley Davidson’s brand actually sells much more than just motorcycles and spare parts. It has a range of products comprising helmets, jackets, sunglasses, gloves, jewelry, pants, watches, T-shirts, among others. However, the main thing this company offers customers is its brand symbolic’s universe, which is transferred to customers’ personal and collective lives.

The marketing communication strategy carried out by this company makes customers believe if they buy Harley Davidson’s motorcycles, clothes, jewelry, etc., they will become part of a special and selected group of motorcyclists, able to live a desired lifestyle by using the concept of this brand. Thus, customers can take part, as well as benefit from the symbolically created Harley Davidson’ style and culture.

Interestingly, people’s identification with Harley Davidson’s brand has much more to do with the attitude of people who feel attracted or identified with the brand (according to some sources they are known as tribes), than for purchasing a product. As some studies report, Harley Davidson’s tribe consists of fearless and adventurous people, who like to spend their lives on two wheels. Moreover, Harley Davidson communication’s process works with elements related to rebellion, liberation, freedom, as well as the deconstruction of social conventions. This is the kind of message that has being succesfully applied in markets all

This amount does not include the massive incomes Harley Davidson receives by licensing its brand to other companies.

Among all different products directly linked with Harley Davidson brand, T-shirts have become wide popular all over the world. While it is true that not everyone can afford to buy a Harley Davidson motorcycle, T-Shirts are not quite expensive, ranging from US$ 25,00 (V-Twin Tank, etc.) until US$ 75,00 (genuine classics long sleeve, etc.). Thus, it is fairly understandable why people looking to feel themselves as part of Harley Davidson’s community buy them. As reported by several sources, a quite interesting statistics about Harley Davidson’s brand logo in clothes, and particularly in T-shirts, is linked to the fact that most part of people wearing a brand’s logo have never riden a Harley Davidson; however, they somehow feel they are acquiring a unique