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Tweeters Of The Pack Harley riders use social media to challenge stereotypes

19.05.12

Twitter users @staci281, @Hacksaw and @RohammedAli are, respectively, an honors student, a chef and a third-grade teacher, but they have one thing in common: They all proudly ride Harley-Davidsons—and they want you to know it.

These motorheads are just a few of the real-life people behind “E Pluribus Unum”—Latin for “out of many, one”—a new campaign that the 109-year-old motorcycle brand hopes will turn into a social media phenom and build sales during a time when recession-spooked consumers may be inclined to put off buying that fantasy bike.

Social media marketing is nothing new, but Harley’s effort is distinct not only for being conceived, developed and executed entirely by the brand’s cultish fan base, but also by using that same base to challenge the stereotype of the Harley rider. Harley’s marketers plucked the idea for the campaign from a fan named Harold Chase, a member of the brand’s Facebook-based crowdsourcing platform Fan Machine, created by Denver-based ad shop Victors & Spoils, which also worked on the campaign. Chase thought that having actual Harley riders show off their own chrome would provide some instant cred. “Our fans know how to express our brand,” said Dino Bernacchi, Harley-Davidson’s director of marketing communications. “They live it every day.”

Source: Adweek