Why Hells Angels Know Best
On our trip to New York we met Richard Wise, Chief Strategic Officer at
Agency 16, modern marketeer and a very saucy fellow to boot. He has paid close
attention to that great US company Harley Davidson and the history of
its brand. He explained that at one point the bikers that are so
closely associated to the epic motorcycles were quite reviled by the
company's management. So much so that they were referred to as
the one-percenters - as in the one percent who spoil it for everyone
else. HD's mindset was that it was
best placed to decide what its customers wanted. The management were
shocked when...
...tattooed-hooligans started taking their beloved bikes apart - or chopping them - to meet their own warped 'hog' desires. It was only when the company's worth hit rock-bottom and a younger member of the HD clan took control of the business that that view changed. The company embraced the one percenters and reframed their destructive tendencies as a guide to what their most hardcore and loyal customers wanted. As a result, the company's fortunes were reversed and its value soared. This struck me as a great example of open source marketing and the value of a co-creative approach. Hells Angels as lead-users - what a great notion.
Stumble It!
I have a question about HD's strategy. Since the brand is HD's most valuable asset and that the motorcycle industry is getting crowded by the Hondas and the like, why not enter the yacht industry?
HD could use its most valuable asset and apply it to a relevant but different market. How do you recon a Harley-Davidson yacht would sell?
Posted by: Nicolas Zumino | May 27, 2006 at 07:06 PM
dear sirs,
greetings
would like to know more about modern marketing strategies. also , if you have a power point and/or outlines , strategies , this will be helpfull.
many thanks in advance
sincerely yours
samir ramzy attia
Posted by: name : samir ramzy attia | January 11, 2009 at 04:38 PM
dear sirs,
greetngs
would like more about " best practice " in marketing whether in outlines and/or power point , explanation
thanks /regard
samir ramzy attia
Posted by: name : samir ramzy attia | January 11, 2009 at 04:40 PM
Hi Samir, sure just drop me a line at james@collaboratemarketing.com...
Posted by: James Cherkoff | January 11, 2009 at 08:01 PM