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Non-Tech : Titan Motorcycle Co. of America (TMOT) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Kurt A. Altmann who wrote (25)	5/15/1998 8:11:00 PM
From: Jera Poole	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 219

Kurt, I got great response from Veritas and a knockout brochure. The company is doing a great job of promotion IMO. Product + Promotion +management = success. I see no negatives in the TMOT equation. JP

To: Kurt A. Altmann who wrote (25)	5/15/1998 10:13:00 PM
From: Dayuhan	Respond to of 219

Kurt, Titan's marketing so far has been driven primarily by independent reviews in motorcycle-oriented magazines. For example, last January "Cycle World" magazine tested 13 top-line big bikes, and pronounced the Titan Gecko "The best of the American V-twins". "Hot Bikes" called a test of a Titan "the most positive road test we have ever done". Testimonials like these are worth more than any number of paid ads, and they appear regularly. As Titan expands, though, further promotions will be necessary. Last year Titan entered into continuing promotional agreements with Playboy (a custom Titan was the first motorcycle ever featured on the cover) and Easy Rider magazines. Titan regularly sends bikes and people to motorcycle races, rallies, and other events. I don't know of any direct mailing efforts to Harley riders, but I believe that mailings to motorcycle clubs are in the works. So far, though, Titan's main problem has been meeting demand, not building it. With the recent increases in production capacity, this is changing, and much more effort is being placed on marketing. This will not be particularly visible outside the motorcycle community. Titans appeal to those who are already devoted motorcyclists - no first-time rider is going to buy a 96 cu. in. bike with nearly double the power/weight ratio of a Harley. I've ridden one of these, and the first time you twist the accelerator, it's downright scary. The upside of this is that the market for large road bikes is the fastest-growing sector of the motorcycle market today - and a lot of the people that are buying Harleys or big Japanese bikes now will be stepping up to Titans in years to come. I don't have statistics on customer satisfaction - I'll e-mail Titan and see if they can provide any. Titan has the most comprehensive 3-year warranty of any motorcycle on the market, and all Titan distributors are required to have Titan-trained mechanics on their staff. My understanding is that the actual number of warranty service calls is very low. Again, I'll try to get statistics. Jera, thanks for the positive comments on the brochure. My team and I wrote, designed, and printed all of that material, and it's nice to have the effort appreciated. It's not often we get to work with such a photogenic product, so that one was really fun to do. Steve