Girl Scouts go digital with cookie sales

NEWSMAKERS
January 27, 2016
Longtime Vandebilt coach passes away
January 27, 2016
NEWSMAKERS
January 27, 2016
Longtime Vandebilt coach passes away
January 27, 2016

Girl Scouts of America turns 104 this March, but age isn’t slowing the iconic girl’s leadership organization down. Peanut Butter Patties, Thin Mints and more are going digital with a revolutionary new way of selling the sought-after treats.

Digital Cookie technology rolled out last year, marking the first time in the history of the long-standing organization that cookies were sold in a manner other than from booths at local stores and going door-to-door. Of the 194 million boxes sold in 2015, only about 2.5 million were sold online, a number the Girl Scouts Louisiana East Council expects to increase this year as more troops catch on.

Girls donning brown or emerald green vests are already making their way through neighborhoods across the country, gathering pre-orders, which began earlier this month. In addition to the traditional fold-out sheet detailing the ingredients and flavors of the nine cookies offered, troops within the Girl Scouts Louisiana East Council also have the opportunity to put their tech skills to use with an app designed for mobile devices or tablets that serves as a command center for cookie orders.


In Galliano, Cadette Troop 20661 is utilizing the new platform to make the most of their sales. Alesha Theriot logs each sale in the app, keeping tabs on her earnings and pending payments while monitoring how far away she is from earning her next recognition, special prizes meant to encourage girls to continue selling. In 2015, she sold over 1,000 boxes. This year, she’s hoping to score 1,250, a goal that would earn her a free week at camp.

“I really like it,” Alesha said of the technology as she swiped from screen to screen, bringing up shout-outs from her “cookie mom” and troop leader Gwen Theriot and a list of this year’s sugary selections. “Especially for older girls, like in their teens, we’re always using our phones so if I run into someone on the street, I can take their order on my phone with the Square. We plug it into the phone and can swipe their card right there.”

Because cookie creation duties are split between two licensed bakers, girls that choose to sell digitally have an app that links to their region’s affiliated company. Louisiana’s troops get their boxes from Virginia-based ABC Bakers, utilizing the COCO Cookie Command app to enter and manage orders, email order confirmations to customers and even learn more about the cookies’ ingredients, a tool Alesha said could help at booth sales when taking orders from those with special dietary concerns, like diabetes.


In addition to learning the basics of proper business management, the app also teaches participants valuable marketing skills by allowing them to send e-cards to potential customers, regardless of their geographic location.

“They can actually send their e-card to their grandmother across the country, she can go online and purchase the cookies and have them shipped directly,” Marianne Addy, vice president of communications and marketing for Girl Scouts Louisiana East Council, explained of the platform. “It allows them to support their Girl Scout even when they don’t live nearby.”

This direct method of selling could increase sales because girls don’t have to physically deliver orders to those that live in other states, Gwen added. Customers can simply follow the link sent to them, make a minimum order of six boxes and have their selections shipped straight to their door.


“It’s really about giving girls an additional sales channel to use,” Addy said. “And it’s not like a stranger can buy cookies without having contact with a Girl Scout. Customers can’t look up a site and just buy cookies.”

Going digital isn’t replacing the tried-and-true face-to-face selling Girl Scouts are known for, however. Instead, the sales methods are meant to work in tandem, enhancing the entrepreneurial experience.

Currently, Alesha’s fold-out sales sheet is more than half-way filled with signatures, orders she keeps in her phone as well to maintain her goals whether at home or on-the-go.


“I think it’s a really good step because our Girl Scouts are so much more familiar with this technology than most us adults are,” her mother said. “It’s bringing them into the century of technology. Most people nowadays don’t always carry cash on them and sometimes the girls may not have their papers with them. When they’re selling, they always have their phones with them and that’s what the girls nowadays are into. By pulling Girl Scouts into technology as well, it’s great learning experience for them. It’s actually hitting on what the girls are really into.” •

Alesha Theriot, a cadette from Troop 20661 in Galliano, adds cookie sales data to her COCO Command App with her mother and Troop Leader Gwen Theriot. Girl Scouts nationwide are enjoying the new digital platform as a way to enhance the entrepreneurial experience while selling the organization’s popular cookies.MELISSA DUET | THE TIMES