Did you know that girls who use the Digital Cookie platform sell, on average, 3 boxes more per order than they do with in-person businesses? In fact, Girl Scouts who paired Digital Cookie with traditional sales on average sold 76% more cookies than girls who did not sell cookies online at all. Needless to say, Digital Cookie is the perfect tool to help your girls run their 21st century cookie business!

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Through the Digital Cookie platform, girls can conduct credit card and online transactions, reach out to potential customers, and track their progress digitally. Best of all, you can customize the way your Girl Scouts learn and earn, using technology in new and engaging ways, all while earning cool cookie business badges along the way!

So where should you start? We know your troop is probably full of go-getters and leaders, but with varying levels of technological and internet experience. Here are some tips for your girls to be successful with Digital Cookie and use the platform to its full potential. Round up your Girl Scouts, put your #cookieboss hats on, and let’s dive in!

Customize the customer-facing page.

Don’t leave it blank! This is her opportunity to connect with potential customers by showcasing her Girl Scout experience and highlighting her sales goals. The more information you put in, the more likely people are to purchase.

Be clear about what you are asking people to do and why – this is called the “ask,” call to action, or pitch. For example: “Please purchase Girl Scout Cookies and help me travel to Costa Rica” or “When you buy Girl Scout Cookies from me, you’re funding my troop’s service project to provide school supplies to a local elementary school.” Be sure to Include her first name and Girl Scout level! Customers want to know specifics about who and what they are supporting, and are more likely to share with their friends if you share some personal details (remember, not too personal! Review the safety tips at the end of this post).

Use these questions if your girls need help getting started:

• What are you saving for this year?
• What have you used cookie sale money for in the past?
• What Girl Scout cookie are you most excited about?
• If you could be anything in the world, what would you be?
• What was the most exciting thing you’ve done as a Girl Scout?
• What are you looking forward to doing with your troop this year?

Tell her cookie story with photos and video.

Photos are a great way to show Girl Scouts in action, taking the lead in the community and being business entrepreneurs. Choose pictures that tell a story. For example, use a picture that shows your girl interacting with a customer, showing off a pile of cookies, jumping in the air with her troop, planting a tree in your local park, etc. These kinds of action shots will engage people more than a posed group shot or portrait.

Video is another great way to catch the customer’s eye and showcase a girl’s creativity and verve. And it can be lots of fun to make too! No need for fancy equipment either—most camera phones have good enough image and sound quality, and there are many simple, free editing programs available. Girls can create videos at home with the help of their parents or work together as a troop to make them.

Here are a few ideas to get her started:

• Record your door-to-door pitch to share online: “Hi, my name is [your name here] and I’m selling Girl Scout cookies to raise money for [your Girl Scout Cookie goal]”.
• Create a chant or cheer about Girl Scout Cookies
• Show off your favorite cookie and how tasty it is. This Colorado Girl Scout discovered the perfect way to devour Girl Scout S’mores!
• Create a spoof movie trailer or music video. Star Wars and Girl Scout Cookies, anyone? NOTE: Your video does not have to be this long or production intensive to get great results!

Reach out early and follow up.

Work with her to make her customer list ASAP—don’t leave it until the last minute! Your friends, family, and past customers are good place to start. Digital Cookie has a handy feature to store your customer lists and reach out to them via email; there are even email templates to make sure you send all the important information! However you decide to sell, be sure to reach out to potential customers early and make sure to follow up when people don’t respond. After you make your first contact, give people 5 to 7 days to respond before you follow up again.

Keep your goal updated by including your offline sales.

Now she can track her progress in real time and so can her customers. ‘nuff said.

Share your Digital Cookie page link on social media.

Share it multiple times with different pictures each time on your Facebook page. Parents can also pitch in by sharing their girl’s story and personalized link on their personal Facebook pages! People are motivated by different things, so share varying benefits of the cookie sale to connect with different types of customers you might be reaching. Some will really want to hear about how she’s saving to go on a big trip with her troop, while others will really like the convenience of buying online with the added benefit of helping out someone they know.

Girl Scouts Social Media Guidelines

We bet your girls will be eager to share their new Digital Cookie page with everyone and we want to support them getting the message out there, so be prepared and share these social media tips to guide their social media posts.

For more information on how you can and cannot share your girl’s Digital Cookie page, please review GSUSA’s Digital Cookie Pledge.

Download the app to stay connected on the go!

Now your Girl Scouts can take their Girl Scout Cookie business on the go! The Digital Cookie Mobile app makes it super simple for customers to order their faves online and pay by credit card to either get the cookies delivered by your girl or have them shipped directly to their home.

Overall, Digital Cookie is a great way to get parents and caregivers involved in their girl’s cookie sale experience who otherwise might not be able to volunteer their time. Have them assist girls with brainstorming their cookie story, creating their customer email lists, and sharing the girl’s personalized cookie site link on Facebook (especially if the girl isn’t active on social media yet).

Do you have plans for leveraging the Digital Cookie platform this year? If so, be sure to let us know in the comments!

Additional Digital Cookie resources:

• Get Started with Digital Cookie in 4 Easy Steps
• Everything you need to know about using Digital Cookie
• GSUSA FAQ for Digital Cookie

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