Harley‑Davidson’s unmistakable V-Twin engine may stir the soul with its powerful sound and distinctive rumble - but even the most loyal rider can cool quickly if a dealer takes too long to respond to an enquiry.
To make sure new prospects hear from dealers quickly, Harley‑Davidson has switched on TrackBack across 20 markets to answer one high-stakes question: How long does it take a dealer to follow up a new sales lead?
The rollout equips both head-office and dealer teams with accurate, real-time insight into one critical performance area: speed of response. And it does so without adding any admin to front-line staff.
Why Speed Still Matters
Harley‑Davidson’s digital activity generates a five-figure number of sales leads each month. Industry research continues to show that the faster a prospect hears from a real person, the more likely they are to convert. A quick phone call creates rapport, builds trust, and often leads directly to a showroom appointment - far more effectively than an email alone.
But only if that call happens soon after the lead is submitted. Studies suggest that leads contacted within the first hour are up to eight times more likely to convert than those phoned later in the day.
Until recently, Harley‑Davidson had to rely on manual CRM updates and inconsistent logging to estimate lead follow-up speed. That made it hard to know where to focus support or spot slow responders early enough to act. Now, that gap is closed.
How the Roll‑Out Works
The project began with a month-long pilot in the UK and Ireland in January. The full deployment followed over the next six weeks, including France, Germany, Spain, Benelux, the Nordics, Czech Republic, and Poland.
Key points of the deployment:
- One‑click integration - TrackBack plugs into the existing CRM and works in the background. Dealers continue using the systems they already know.
- Clear visibility at every level - Head-office teams can monitor response speed by market, region, dealership, or individual salesperson.
- Minute‑level reporting - Dashboards refresh automatically, providing real-time insight into follow-up times for both phone and email.
Dashboards use role-based access, so staff at every level - from regional managers to dealer principals - can see exactly what they need. For dealership managers, TrackBack’s Dealer Insight reporting offers a live view of how quickly their team is following up leads, all accessible through a single sign-on.
Adding Email to the Picture
While the phone remains the highest-converting channel, not every lead includes a phone number - and not every call connects on the first attempt. That’s where TrackBack Email comes in.
When a dealership replies to a lead by email, TrackBack logs the time of response, confirms delivery, and tracks whether the customer opened the message. This gives Harley‑Davidson a complete picture of lead follow-up activity - not just who was called, but who was contacted in any channel and when.
It also allows for deeper insights into email quality. Management teams can review whether replies are timely, personal, and useful - helping to identify training needs across the network and support dealerships that may need extra guidance.
What TrackBack Adds
Ian Perkins, Sales and Marketing Director at TrackBack, said the scale of the roll-out sets the tone:
“Rolling out across 20 markets at once shows real commitment from Harley‑Davidson. They wanted clear, consistent data on one of the most important parts of the sales process - and now they have it. This gives them the visibility to support their network with much more focus and confidence.”
Looking Ahead
It’s still early in the rollout, so too soon to draw final conclusions. But once the data builds and performance settles, Harley‑Davidson may look to tighten its first contact targets. Reducing the current one-hour target could be one option to consider, once a consistent baseline is in place.
For now, the message is clear: When you can see how long a prospect waits, you can move faster.
By focusing on one key area - lead follow-up speed - and capturing it cleanly across phone and email in 20 markets, Harley‑Davidson expects to turn more online interest into test rides, and more test rides into the signature rumble of a Harley rolling off the forecourt.