How to Sell More Girl Scout Cookies

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You have the basics down, but there's more to selling Girl Scout cookies than meets the eye. Here are some easy ways to increase revenue.

Warning
Always have a parent or guardian present, only go door-to-door during the day, and never enter a stranger’s house or car.

Step 1: Know your product
Get familiar with the different types of cookies—their names, flavors, and basic ingredients. Try them for yourself so you know what each one tastes like, and be sure to bone up on newly released varieties.

Tip
Since many people have food allergies, find out which cookies contain nuts, gluten, dairy products, and other common allergens.

Step 2: Make nice
When approaching potential buyers, introduce yourself, make eye contact, and smile. Ask about their cookie preferences, and suggest other varieties they might enjoy. Don’t forget to wear your uniform proudly.

Tip
People like to know their money is going to a good cause. Go into specifics, explaining how cookie sales will fund your troop’s activities and projects over the coming year.

Step 3: Location, location, location
Hawk your wares in high-traffic areas like schools, shopping centers, festivals, retirement communities, and offices. Be sure to get permission from whoever’s in charge before claiming your turf.

Step 4: Maintain contacts
If you’re a sales veteran, call, visit, or email customers who have ordered from you in the past. Keep a written record of everyone’s name, phone number, email, and favorite cookie variety.

Step 5: Work together
Join forces with other Girl Scouts and their parents to sell from a booth. Hanging out with friends is more fun than going solo, and you’ll be able to pool your resources to ramp up sales.

Tip
Teamwork’s great, but don’t let anyone horn in on your core customer base.

Step 6: Go big
Why sell individual boxes when you can sell whole cases at once? Talk to local business owners about buying cookies in bulk to use as employee incentives or customer gifts.

Step 7: Get a gimmick
Work with your troop to coin cool slogans, create posters using them, and even compose cookie jingles to sing while you sell.

Did You Know?
In 2008, 15-year-old Jennifer Sharpe from Dearborn, Michigan sold 17,328 boxes of cookies—an unofficial Girl Scout record.