Sako is Europe's leading manufacturer of hunting and recreational weapons and part of the renowned Beretta Group. Weapons made by Sako combine traditional gunsmith skills with contemporary technology. Based on this, skilled employees use modern CNC and cold-hammer forging machines to provide accurate high-quality rifles.
Finns trust in Sako's weapons, and its bolt-action rifle is the most popular imported weapon of its kind in the US. Sako is known around the world for its high quality. However, in countries such as the US, many customers buy custom-made weapons from small gunsmiths, in the belief that Sako does not make customized models. To dispel this myth, Wakeone and Sako joined forces to build the Sako and Tikka Selector configurators.
There are 23 variants of the popular Sako 85 rifle and 19 of the Tikka T3x model. These models can also be customized as preferred, with over a thousand assembly options with various barrels, stocks, sights and left or right-handedness. Almost two thousand configurations of the Sako 85 and over a thousand of the Tikka are available. Presenting so many mass tailoring options has proven highly challenging with traditional methods.
Built on the Wakeone platform, the Selector tailoring tool provides a visually and impressive way of demonstrating the portfolio's range online, in stores and at trade fairs. This intuitive tool has been complemented with rendered product images, providing customers in search of the right weapon with a pre-purchase visualization of their choices. The tool also provides an online purchase path, by giving the location of the nearest retailer.
Sako initially had a much simpler solution in mind.
The tool's creation went without a hitch, with Sako's product development team serving as the main collaborator with Wakeone. Besides enabling the tailoring of weapons, the Selector tool provides Sako with important information based on customers' choices.
The R&D behind Selector can be applied beyond sales work. Rendered product images can be used in advertising material, and the tool itself is an interesting and easily shareable social media 'hook'. It enables the easy and effective online and in-store presentation of product expertise, and of the range of product portfolios in particular.
Complex purchasing processes are often improved by surprisingly simple solutions.
Harri Lammi
+358 40 5620713
harri.lammi@wakeone.co