Harley-Davidson has built a strong brand through engaging with consumers and fostering brand communities. It focuses on cultivating a rugged, rebellious brand personality and positioning itself as a lifestyle brand centered around freedom and individualism. Key aspects of its strategy include sponsoring rallies and events to build connections between riders, establishing the Harley Owners Group community, and diversifying merchandise to further engage customers in the Harley lifestyle.

2. HARLEY-DAVIDSON
BUILDING A BRAND THROUGH CONSUMER ENGAGEMENT
2 911283 Vikash Oraon
13 1011043 Prashant Karande
45 1011221 Vishal Nidhalkar
58 1011265 Prathibha Kodavaty
71 1011357 Shubhangi Satpute

3. WHAT IF ‘HARLEY-DAVIDSON’ WALKS IN
THE CLASS NOW…

5. Brand Management Framework
Brand
Identity
Brand
Awareness
Customer-
Brand Brand Based Brand
Personality Communication Equity
Brand
Image
Brand
Positioning
Source: Brand management Framework by Professor Preeti Krishnana Lyndem

6. Brand Management Framework contd…..
Brand
• Identity
Fulfill • Rebellious • Harley experience • Message –
dreams • Outdoorsy –individual & brand
• Harley • Rugged shared personality,
experience
Brand • Tough
Brand • H. O. G. experience &
• Strong
Personality • Brave
Communication • Design Heritage design
brand • Born free • Bike sound • Medium – print
personality • Individualism adds, videos,
• Dark and Brand
Brand
strong community (H.
Positioning
O. G), Rallies,
Accessories,
Biker café

7. Cult Brand
• Unequivocal customer loyalty
• Dare to be different and celebrate that difference
• Relatively very small customer base, with enormous loyalty,
spreading the good word and spending lots of money
• Strong customer relationship, makes their customers feel unique,
important, and part of an exclusive group - brand communities
• Cult brands marketers define the consumer segments that they
will not serve
• Cult brands draw their consumers with propositions that go
against the mainstream
• Cult products are normally priced well above the industry level

8. • Consumers want to be part of a group that’s different
• Cult brand inventors show daring and determination
• Cult brands sell lifestyles.
• Listen to the choir and create cult brand evangelists.
• Cult brands always create customer communities.
• Cult brands are inclusive.
• Cult brands promote personal freedom and draw power from their
enemies
Source: Ragas, M., & Bueno, B. (2002). The Power of Cult Branding: How 9 Magnetic Brands Turned Customers into
Loyal Followers (and Yours Can, Too!). Prima Publishing, Roseville, CA

10. • A community of buyers • Harley owners could • Bike Week, races for
who not own just the participate, share potential customers to
product, but belong to experiences of the test drive the bikes.
the Harley way of life –
freedom,
empowerment,
individualism.
Harley Owners Sponsored rallies
Campaigns
Group and gatherings
• Wallets, helmets, • Insurance, emergency
leather jackets, a road-side service, rental
clothing line, visa card arrangements at
etc... vacation spots,
membership in riding
groups, motorcycle
magazine subscriptions
Diversified Other Customer
accessories benefits

11. Iconic Branding
• “Objects of desire or devotion”
• Transcend from product benefits, to become a part of
people’s lives and of their popular culture.
• They have strong cultural roots that tap into society’s
values, sometimes even inspiring a shift in those values
• Physical or symbolic features that make them instantly
recognizable, a brand with such powerful visual cues
• Enjoy far higher top-of-mind awareness, and is more likely
considered for purchase
• Larger customer base

12. Brand Personality Framework
Brand Personality
Sincerity Excitement Competence Sophistication Ruggedness
• Down-to- • Daring • Reliable • Upper class • Outdoorsy
earth • Spirited • Intelligent • Charming • Tough
• Honest • Imaginative • Successful
• Wholesome • Up-to-date
• Cheerful
Source: Dimension of brand personality by JENIFER L. AAKER

13. Brand Personality Framework for HD
Symbolic
• Sound
• Logo – bar & shield
• Brand mascot – eagle
Sincerity Excitement Competence Sophistication
• Design Ruggedness
• Tattoos
• Piercing
• Black color
• Skull and Fire
Utilitarian
• Durability
• Stability
• Comfort design
• Metal – strength

14. Brand Personality of Harley Davidson
Excitement Ruggedness

15. Brand Community
• A group of consumers organized around the lifestyle, activities and ethos of the brand.
• It provides individual the opportunity to find meaning and a sense of self through commitment to the
particular lifestyle promoted by brand.
Shared consciousness Rituals & traditions Sense of moral responsibility
• Legitimacy: To • Reproduces community & • Sense of duty to community
differentiates between true meaning of brand by their as a whole & to individual
believer & opportunists ritualized behaviors & scripts members of community
• Oppositional brand • Celebrating brand history • Integrating & retaining
loyalty: Marks members’ members
inclusion in & exclusion from • Sharing brand stories
various lifestyles • Assisting in the use of
brand
Source: ‘Brand Community’ by Albert M. Muniz, Jr. and Thomas C. O’Guinn

16. Brand Community – Attributes from HD
Shared consciousness Rituals & traditions Sense of moral responsibility
By restricting membership to By holding and sponsoring Harley Strict rules governing
owners of the Harley Davidson Davidson rallies and allowing membership along with
motorcycles, HOG ensured that people to share their experience hierarchical structure allows
only brand loyalist exist within HOG ensures that the brand community to police itself and
community. would thrive through future ensures only loyal members
generations. have the most say in
community.

17. Brand Community Affluence
• Strong association with shared activities, goals or shared values and loose
associations with one another
• Shared activities, goals, values are key to this community affiliation
• Delivers only limited community benefits
• Community members are at risk of dropping out when brand idea is not
supplemented with human connections
• To strengthen & expand the community, use Webs or Hubs
• Strong one-to-one relationships with one another who have similar or
complimentary needs
• Personal relationships are the key to this community affiliation
• Strongest & most stable form of community
• Strong connection to central figure and weaker associations with one another.
• A charismatic figure is the key to this community affiliation
• Strong but unstable form of community when central figure is no longer
present
• To make it strong Hub must be bonded to community through Webs

18. Brand Community Affluence by HD
• Shared values, goals: rebellious, freedom, independence
• Set of values emotionally connects the customers to HD
The Harley Davidson community exhibits characteristics of Pool form but at the
same time the marketing activities are leading to formation of Webs & Hubs in
Harley Davidson museum
order to strengthen bond amongst its existing and potential customers.
• It builds web of interpersonal connections through features such as walls
around campus decorated with large, custom-inscribed stainless-steel rivets
commissioned by individuals or groups
• Inscriptions reflect stories and people behind them
• People reading it engage in conversation, plan to stay in touch & even plan
to share ride someday
• Harley Davidson build a bridge to a younger audience through association
with professional skateboarders and Harley enthusiast

19. Harley-Davidson LIVE BY IT.
THANK YOU