3point5.com Drops a Line in the Hunt/Fish Market

Online training leader pushes into new market

Moving aggressively into the hunt/fish market, online training company 3point5.com recently contracted with Smith & Wesson to provide retail sales training in support of Smith & Wesson, Walther and Thompson/Center Arms products.

In addition, 3point5.com recently released product training modules featuring handguns, shotguns, rifles, knifes, fishing rods and fishing reels – written by published experts in the field and featuring interactive graphics and tests.

These moves mark the company’s most significant foray into the hunting and fishing market since making its name building online training for the outdoor sporting goods industry. Set up as an online campus, 3point5.com offers training free of charge to retail salespeople, and reinforces that training with innovative, online product-knowledge testing. The company also manages employee purchase programs and provides detailed feedback to retail managers on what their employees are learning and buying.

“As we penetrated the outdoor sporting goods market, we recognized that progressive, tech-savvy hunting and fishing companies would have similar needs,” said 3point5.com CEO Duncan Robins. “Smith & Wesson was the perfect fit.”

Under the new contracts, 3point5.com will build Web-based training sites for Smith & Wesson and two of its signature firearms brands – Walther and Thompson/Center.

“The relationship was a natural fit for Smith & Wesson,” said VP of Marketing Tom Taylor.

“Sales of our products are facilitated by thousands of professional retail sales associates across the country. The leading-edge online training applications developed by 3point5.com are clearly the most efficient way to ensure that front-line sales associates in retail outlets are completely up to speed on our products and their features. We are proud to be the first firearms manufacturer to offer this unique and advanced approach to sales.”

In addition to manufacturer-specific training, 3point5.com also provides generic product training on everything from hiking boots to skis to sleeping bags. The training modules educate and test salespeople on terms, anatomy, sales tips, sales add-ons and product history. Recent additions include training on handguns, shotguns, rifles, knifes, fishing rods and fishing reels.

About 3point5.com
3point5.com is an online campus that represents over 65,000 registered pros and sales professionals, 250 manufacturers and over 8,200 retailers in an increasing number of industries, including Outdoor, Snow, Bike, Action Sports, Golf, Tennis and Hunt/Fish. 3point5.com offers a fun and secure place for retail sales professionals to train, access information and interact within their industry.

About Smith & Wesson
Smith & Wesson Holding Corporation, a global leader in safety, security, protection and sport, is parent company to Smith & Wesson Corp., one of the world’s largest manufacturers of quality firearms and firearm safety/security products and parent company to Thompson/Center Arms, Inc., a premier designer and manufacturer of premium hunting rifles, black powder rifles, interchangeable firearms systems and accessories under the Thompson/Center brand. Smith & Wesson licenses shooter protection, knives, apparel, and other accessory lines. Smith & Wesson is based in Springfield, Massachusetts with manufacturing facilities in Springfield, Houlton, Maine, and Rochester, New Hampshire. The Smith & Wesson Academy is America’s longest running firearms training facility for law enforcement, military and security professionals. For more information on Smith & Wesson, call (800) 331-0852 or log on to www.smith-wesson.com. For more information on Thompson/Center Arms, log on to www.tcarms.com.