Interesting Comment

[rod2625]

Up on the Aprilia Product Forum:

"Piaggio/Aprilia's highway-capable 500cc scooters (Scarabeo and Beverly) still lack a proper motorcycle-ish fueltank and American's won't buy a step-through because it looks wussy."

Comment regarding how Piaggio/Aprilia are doing as a company. My guess is that he never visits this forum...:-)

Roger

[SEADOG7624]

Well, that is one man's opinion, and he is sure entititled to it.

Some of us might disagree about step-throughs looking "wussy." Some of us older guys are a lot less concerned about "image" and appreciate the small gas tank at fill up time with gas at $3.50 a gallon or so our here in California.

Seems also that scooter sales are generally on the increase which is nothing but good for economy and traffic congestion.

[Big K]

American's won't buy a step-through because it looks wussy

What a stupid generalisation.

[OkieAtl500Rider]

The motorcycle universe is filled with uncomfortable, heat generating missiles, that look "macho". If you base you purchases on what is the cool look of the year you will never have a comfortable, stylish and functional Aprilia scooter.

[KENTWALKER58]

...if anyone at Aprilia/Piaggio/whoever reads this forum. If they did, they'd learn SO MUCH, and would be clued in on what's really going on.

I mean, it's like a film maker not reading the critics reviews on his movies! How's he gonna learn, what he's doing wrong, and right?

Kent

[JulioB]

Sure it is a small tank, you have to consider the MPG the bike gives you, when I was doing my trip from Miami FL to San Francisco CA, the other 3 bikes were HD with larger tanks (2 Electra Ultra Glide and a Road King) but every time they stopped to refuel, I had almost half a tank of gas! I also get 52 mpg in spirited stop and go trafic here in Myrtle Beach, so that is about 240 miles out of a tank. Lets see his adequately tanked motorcycle do that!!

[1stlt]

Generalization, yes. But for lack of better, relevant statistic, we could only offer our own observations and opinions here, right? And that, basically, is generalization.

You do have to submit that our advertising industry do target their most aggressive ad campaigns toward the profitable sectments for any given products. Our mass media pretty much dictates and shapes our society as much as we would like to use the same tools to affect the marketing industry.

Please take a couple of commercials I noticed recently for example...

During a time when we should be conscious of fuel alternatives and reduced consumption, Hummer has an aggressive and blatant ad campaign out right now on the tube! One showed a young man being slighted and made to feel inferior, his solution!? Get a Hummer to 'regain his manhood'! Those were pretty much the words used in that 30-second spot; then, power and speed equate manliness. Then there was the other one showing a mother being edged out of her parking space by another overly aggressive mom, and... of cos her solution was to get a Hummer, just so she could feel she has more power and control over such matter.

While another car maker has a commercial showing a father 'teaching' his teenage son to take on responsibility of that new muscle car they were in- by showing the son that it would be RESPONSIBLE to drag and speed in an empty parking lot.

Can anyone truly say that they have seen scooter commercials on the tube recently!!!? The local bike dealers are pushing massive BMW bikes zooming and twisting through scenic roads while words like Power, Speed, Performance, Surge flash pass. They wouldn’t be selling too many bikes if they showcased a maxi cruising along smoothly and quietly. One would be hard pressed to find ads out there that would push the likes of convenience, fuel economy, comfort, safety, etc. to sell our scoots, any scoots! Yea, there might have been some locally, like in SF where Vespas are very popular to the young and trendy.

We, as a whole (that's generalization for ya!!!), nurtured aggressiveness and power. I could readily attest to that when, over this weekend, with a tally of over one hundred and fifty thousands spectators, we were surrounded by nearly THIRTY THOUSAND bikers coming into town for the annual MotoGP!!! And that number was a conservative estimate by the local media!

In all honesty, of all the cyclists I have passed on the road, stopped along in the local stores, etc., I think I could pretty much categorize their thoughts and/or reactions and responses to 5 separate groups-

1- Rude
2- Indifferent
3- Mildly amused - interested
4- Congenial - Friendly
5- Fascinated – Enthusiastic

The rude ones would not even acknowledge my existence when I nodded or waved when passing on local streets; stopping at a traffic light, they would be the ones sitting on their bikes, looking straight and not making any attempts at eye contacts next to me.

The indifferent ones would look my way, look at my scoot and that would be about it… OK, maybe a slight nod of the heads as acknowledgement.

Then, onward to the ones what would readily wave back and or smile under the same circumstances.

Finally, there would be a few that would the few that would walk on by and really check out my scoot when we would be standing about at some parking lots.

Sadly, I have came across more 1 through 3 than the latter.

Now, we could try and break these categories down further by their age groups and genders…

1- Male under 21
2- Male between 22-40
3- Male over 41
4- Female under 21
5- Female between 22-40
6- Female over 41

When we start crossing the numbers we correlate in our minds with those of the second sets of categories, we started arriving to our own ‘generalized’ conclusions :-)

From your own personal experiences, what kind of conclusions do you have? Care to share?

Can we safely say that the average population was first exposed to the earlier generations of scooters- the smaller Vespas and early Japanese models? Well, we could then also agree that if we mention the word scooter, most people would conjure up images of small, noisy putt putts zipping about town or as costars in old movies like "Roman Holidays". Those are not the images strapping young men (or women) grew up in our power-craving country envision themselves in. Marlon Brando did not pose on top of his scooter in the "Wild One"; those weren't maxi scooters cruising down the dusty highway in "Easy Rider" nor did Tom Cruise race against an F14 Tomcat leaving the tarmac in "Top Gun"... and on and on.

We, as Maxi scooter riders and aficionados, are a peculiar lot; maybe we have ‘transcended’ pass the machismo stages of our lives and embraced wholeheartedly sensibility and maturity? See, I am once again generalizing. I kidded with my wife from time to time about going out for a ride on my ‘Girly Bike’ but I assure you, there is nothing ‘girly’ about the way I feel of my beloved AA500! I am very proud of my bike, proud to be seen on it and very proud to be a scooter rider! My other ‘ride’ used to have fourteen sets of road wheels, seated four, guzzle up half a gallon of gas per mile and has a big tube in front that goes Boom! Yea, I do know what macho rides are…

Well, folks, I am sure there would be many out there on the forum that would readily disagree with me… lets hear ‘em :-)

[williamr]

Bikers are notoriously conservative. That's why we all have to live with telescopic front forks, which from an engineering point of view are one of the worst solutions to the problems of steering and front suspension.

Rob

[JulioB]

Originally Posted by 1stlt

We, as Maxi scooter riders and aficionados, are a peculiar lot; maybe we have ‘transcended’ pass the machismo stages of our lives and embraced wholeheartedly sensibility and maturity?

Well, not quite.... My other ride is a 400hp Pontiac GTO But I used to have a Prius

[Ascender]

Originally Posted by 1stlt

We, as Maxi scooter riders and aficionados, are a peculiar lot; maybe we have ‘transcended’ pass the machismo stages of our lives and embraced wholeheartedly sensibility and maturity? See, I am once again generalizing. I kidded with my wife from time to time about going out for a ride on my ‘Girly Bike’ but I assure you, there is nothing ‘girly’ about the way I feel of my beloved AA500! I am very proud of my bike, proud to be seen on it and very proud to be a scooter rider! My other ‘ride’ used to have fourteen sets of road wheels, seated four, guzzle up half a gallon of gas per mile and has a big tube in front that goes Boom! Yea, I do know what macho rides are…

Very well put! In fact, your entire set of observations are brilliant.

From what I've seen here and other forums, the maxi demographic tends to be a bit older, thoughtful, and dedicated to good value for the money - in short, a marketing department's nightmare

I've been thinking about this for a while, since I've been on assignment at a major busines school. What would it take to mount a successful ad campaign for maxis? We know what makes them so wonderful; how can we convey that to a larger audience?

I'd love to hear everyone's two cents (tuppence, whatever) on this.

[Chris Eberhart]

Mark, there is an image problem. That is, most people do not know these exist. They think of motorcycles as being for the adventurous or tough. They think of scooters as mopeds. What they need is to hear us talking about these bikes, about how they are comfortable and easy to ride, how we take them everywhere from daily commuting to trips to the country and across the country, to the grocery and hardware store. One of my favorite features is that I can park it just about anywhere. I went to a large music festival in Lansing a couple of weeks ago. Car parking is blocks away and expensive. I just rode up to the admission gate and put the stand down.
Another thing that keeps people from riding is the perception that motorcycles are dangerous. And they are if you do not ride properly. I have plenty of power with the Atlantic but I never feel like riding like an idiot in traffic or on a curve to get a thrill, which is all you can do on a sport bike.

[wengr]

One showed a young man being slighted and made to feel inferior, his solution!? Get a Hummer to 'regain his manhood'! Those were pretty much the words used in that 30-second spot; then, power and speed equate manliness. Then there was the other one showing a mother being edged out of her parking space by another overly aggressive mom, and... of cos her solution was to get a Hummer, just so she could feel she has more power and control over such matter.

Yeah, I like that one. but what they fail to mention is that after you pay the money for the silly looking confidence booster, what you actually have is a cost downed, chevy suburban chassis based piece of junk which really has nothing to do with what a real hummer was. This is inho the number one reason that the US auto industry is and will remain in decline. Unfortuneately for the big 3 most people may be dumb but they are not Stupid. another example. GM buys Saab, turns the best selling model into a Saab looking, but malibu chassis inferior product. And then asaults us with ads about how Saab is "Born from Jets". The big 3 corporate philosophy is to insult your intelligence daily, and inmho they deserve to fail.
And as for Americans thinking scooters are wussy, I say the writer is a master of the obvious. It steps though like a girls bike, has no gears, features low displacement and power. it has no performance to interest the performance bike crowd, and there is no massive product lines of branded trinkets and silly garb to keep you entertained like the HD crowd. sad but true.

[JulioB]

Originally Posted by Ascender

What would it take to mount a successful ad campaign for maxis? We know what makes them so wonderful; how can we convey that to a larger audience?

I'd love to hear everyone's two cents (tuppence, whatever) on this.

I get you, the problem is that to get to that broader audience you will have to make people to think for themseves and to stop wanting them to be like everybody else just like the media wants them to be. For example analize the "Lone ranger rebels that drive HD's"
1. Most of them ride HD
2. Most of them wear black
3. Most of them buy accessories from HD to make them unique
4. Most of them wear something that says HD
5. Most of the "loners" travel in packs!!
6. etc.

So to address a larger crowd you will have to break this stereotypes maybe making fun of them in tv commercials to make them see this more clearly, to make people understand who the real rebels are and how great are our bikes because nobody wants them, etc.

This was the reason I bought my GTO, like everyone else I prefered the Mustang but a quick search of the specs tells you how much you are getting for your money, 400hp LS2 (the exact same engine as in the Corvette) 6 speed t56 Tremec transmision, all leather interior, AUSTRALIAN BUILT QUALITY, super rare (just like my S500) very comfortable, nice fuel economy for the engine, great highway cruiser (80mph @ less than 2,000 rpms), so I am basically getting a Holden HSV Monaro GTO for $27,000 brand new when it really costs ~$87,000 AUD (aprox $67,000 USD). But then this goes into another forum.... sorry.

[Lew]

Key word mentioned " ...trendy".
Heaven forbid that we are not considered "trendy".
If the big biker doesn't want to wave, then thats his/her problem, not mine. I'll keep running along on my Suzy 250 until I can get enough ahead to be a maxi scoot. The initial cost was the key for me. a 2000 cycle with 132 miles for $2400 or a 2 year old scooter for $5000+.

[1stlt]

Originally Posted by wengr

Yeah, I like that one, but what they fail to mention is that after you pay the money for the silly looking confidence booster…

Advertising is all about getting the masses to buy something they might not necessary need, or want, quality aside. If automakers could sell us a pile of junks for big bucks, think it would irk their consciences to do so!!!?

Originally Posted by ascender

From what I've seen here and other forums, the maxi demographic tends to be a bit older, thoughtful, and dedicated to good value for the money - in short, a marketing department's nightmare…

Nightmare, maybe not, but surely an almost insurmountable undertaking.

At a very young age, boys in America were presented with large metal & plastic toy motorcycles; G.I. Joe had his massive motorcycle with machineguns and rocket launchers. At a very young age, girls had their Barbie and her pink scooters, complete with flower stickers and plastic puppies. Am I right that there was never a motorcycle made for poor Babies? Working against that kind of early cultural indoctrination, what hope do we have growing up!? In that respect, Europeans are more cosmopolitans than we are. (Here’s a tip of da hat to ya boys in the UK) :-p

Granted, against all odds, the unremarkably remarkable VW Bugs were imported, multiplied, embraced, became popular and elevated to cult status. After four decades, trusty VWs are still putt, putting about. Back then, we had a free-loving, counterculture generation that we do not have now. We had the birth of muscle cars back then, but they are but a puddle compared to the vast ocean of our marketing and craving for large, gas-guzzling SUVs now.

The new Volkswagon Beetle never quite caught on as its predecessor for obvious reasons, even if it was noted as one of the safer car out there!

I would equate the birth our scooters, to this country, in general, to that of the original Volkswagons. Both were pretty much conceived out of pre/post-war necessity, imported, both were somewhat underpowered compared to their larger brethrens. (I am sure I’m gonna get arguments on this note), both were pretty basic, practical and fuel efficient. One would think that would be a guaranteed mega seller. Not in this age, not right now in AMERICA!

Outside the United States (and maybe Canada... hey any Canadian forum members out there?), it is a different world. From my observation while stationed in Europe and my trips to Southeast Asia, the cultures, the lifestyles are very different than ours here stateside. Traffic tended to be chaotic and congested in larger cities (except maybe LA and NYC), parking spaces are in short supply while the price of gas could be two or three times of what we paid stateside. Smaller vehicles ruled supreme, without sacrificing performances and styles. Our type of maxi scooters, and scooters in general, are pretty much universally accepted as honorable and noble alternatives to four-wheelers!

Automakers all over the world have models that they don’t even sell in the United States!!! Why, because they are not attractive or deemed desirable to the American public (Generalization once again). There are fuel-efficient, economical Japanese automobiles in China, in Indonesia… and heck even in Japan, that, we will never get to drive! It’s pretty much the same with European cars in Europe. Do you agree?

Oh, that’s right, Aprilia and Priaggio are doing exactly that, ain’t they!?

Why would large bike manufacturers be interested in pouring mega bucks at manufacturing and marketing scooters when their aims are to push and sell five-digit costing bikes like Goldwings or R1200GS!?

For the same reason why the extremely popular Smart Car of Europe will not catch on here, our favorite scooters and thus, riders of such scooters, will always be relegated to the sidelines… just not to us and in our hearts and minds!!!

Originally Posted by ascender

I've been thinking about this for a while, since I've been on assignment at a major business school. What would it take to mount a successful ad campaign for maxis? We know what makes them so wonderful; how can we convey that to a larger audience?

You will have to change a culture and at least a couple of generations’ way of thinking, to affect acceptance in the States. Meanwhile, sad but true, the more our maxi scoots are like motorcycles, the more they will be accepted; we have to compatible performances of some of the medium cruisers already and our bikes could be mistaken, from a distance, as just another fairing equipped medium cruisers too. Think a fake gas tank like the Vespa Supersport model might help?

I do agree, the best advertising for us are out and riding about, to be seen and talking to others. I am forever preaching the merits of my scoot to anyone who cares to listen. I was thinking of adding a removable ‘bumper’ sticker on the bike of my scoot- “I am getting XXX mpg, what about you?” to entertain the viewing public behind me at stop signs and traffic lights.

For now, we, maxi scooter riders, are an orphan lot. The image of Monty Python’s knights in the “Search for the Holy Grail” comes into mind. We are that small enthusiastic troop, galloping along with our coconut shells forever searching for the holy grail of Universal Acceptance. Maybe they wouldn’t lock us up like they did in the end of the movie!? I say, Ride On.

OK, time for someone else to get on the soap box.