New Ulm, Minn. – Through collaboration with its member organizations and businesses, the Archery Trade Association (ATA) has launched Archery360.com, a consumer-facing website targeting teens and young adults new to archery and bowhunting.

Archery’s recent surge in popularity uncovered a need for easy-to-find online information for beginners: how to shoot, where to shoot, what to buy and how to buy it. Archery 360 was created to help fill this void. The website will also serve as a compliment to the ATA’s “Release Your Wild” advertising and social campaign, which launched this earlier this week to harness and direct surging archery interest among new and young archers.

While the campaign is primarily targeting teenagers through social engagement, Archery360’s content-heavy site will expand on campaign messaging by offering additional resources, how-tos, news, product profiles and an archery shop locator.

“The information was and is out there, but it’s scattered around the online space and it’s not always written or presented in a way that appeals to this age demographic,” said Jay McAninch, ATA president and CEO. “Archery 360 takes these great beginner resources — many created by our member companies and partner organizations — and puts them all in one spot where young people can find them.”

Equally critical is Archery 360’s commitment to archery-related news, which provides constant and timely archery buzz along with timeless resources like the site’s “Getting Started in Archery” section created as a starting point for those new to the sport

“You want to give readers those utility pieces, like the site’s archery shop locator, that are practical and useful,” said Jeremy Henricks, director of information architecture for the ATA. “Then, there’s the other side of it. We’ve got make sure readers have good reason to come back. So there’s in-depth coverage of news and entertainment too — archery’s influence on fall fashion trends, event coverage of the World Cup Final or maybe a piece profiling world-ranked archers and their well-documented tattoos.”

You can track archery’s surging popularity back to last spring when the blockbuster movie, “Hunger Games” was released. Its pop culture moment sustained itself through the 2012 movie release of “Brave” and Team USA Archery’s silver and gold medal winning performances at the 2012 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games. The trend continues to spike upward as interest grows.

Here are a few details describing key site features:

1. Shop Locator. If you’ve been inspired to take up archery, but don’t have a pathway in, an archery shop is one of the best places to start. There, you can actually check out different types of bows and many shops have indoor ranges where you can shoot. Plus, many shops have information on local clubs and tournaments, while also offering coaching and repair services. The shop locator allows you to search shops by distance and by services offered.

2. Getting Started. Archery 360 has a dedicated section created to introduce the uninitiated. Readers can explore the three primary disciplines in archery and get information on choosing the right archery equipment based on discipline type and personal preferences. There’s a section on safety tips and basic tournament rules. Plus, readers can get briefed on the types of venues and organizations that provide shooting opportunities and ranges.

3. Event Listings and Coverage. The 2012 Olympics put the spotlight on the best archers in the world and Americans tuned in: archery was the most-watched Olympic sport on NBC during the network’s first week of Games coverage When the Olympics ended, those archers didn’t just go away. In fact, the USA Archery men’s team just took gold at the World Archery Championships in Turkey, October 6. Archery 360 offers complete event coverage and provides a list of all major U.S. events for those looking to compete.

USA Archery, the national governing body for the Olympic sport of archery in the United States and an online resource for archers, is an Archery 360 contributor. The group provides accurate and trusted information on basic introductions to archery, how to get started, find coaching and, eventually, compete. Discoverarchery.org, an online resource developed by Easton Foundations, was also a critical contributor to Archery 360’s “Getting Started” section.