Wednesday, January 4, 2017

It's a bird! It's a plane! No, it's a Super Troop!

Power up your Cookie Sales by setting a goal to become a Super Troop!

No, you don’t need capes (or the ability to leap tall buildings in a single bound) to become a Super Troop. Just reach a Per Girl Average (PGA) selling of 160 boxes of cookies--or get to 175 for even more benefits! 

Check your troop’s PGA on the Sales Report tab in eBudde throughout the sale to monitor your progress. All troop cookie orders—whether through the traditional order card, Goal Getter Order Card, Digital Cookie or booth sales—count toward your PGA.

Why be a Super Troop? Troops with a PGA of 160 packages or more can earn an exclusive Super Troop t-shirt for each girl selling and one t-shirt for an adult volunteer. Troops reaching a PGA of 175 or more earn an additional 5 cents for every box of cookies they sell! 

Not only does working toward Super Troop status help your troop, but the more cookies a girl sells, the more Girl Scout Bucks and Recognitions she receives. And Girl Scout Bucks double when used for GSWPA-sponsored camps!

Are you up to the challenge? We know you can do it! Here are some tips for achieving Super Troop status:

Goal Getter Cards
Door-to-door sales don’t have to end in January! Make sure all the girls in your troop are using Goal Getter Order Cards (available to download at vipetraining.littlebrownie.com). These can be used to take in-person orders after initial orders are submitted. Additional cookies are available at Cookie Cupboards through March 19 to fulfill customer orders.

Remember Operation: Sweet Appreciation
Girls who participate in Operation: Sweet Appreciation or another Gift of Caring program sell an average of 70 more boxes than girls who don't. Sweet! OSA donations can be made on the Goal Getter Order Card, Digital Cookie and at booth sales and all donations count toward each girl’s and/or troop’s overall sales.

Download these fun printables to use at booth sales to encourage people to donate.

Promote 5 for Five!
Encourage cookie customers to buy five boxes to be eligible to win five CASES of Girl Scout Cookies through our 5 for Five Contest! Just give them a 5 for Five certificate (available on vipetraining.littlebrownie.com), which includes instructions for entering the contest along with an exclusive code.


Bling Your Booth!
Not only will a blinged out booth draw customers and increase sales, but your troop could win either $100, $75 or $50 in GS Shop certificates through the Bling Your Booth contest!

Check out our Pinterest board for some bling-y inspiration.

Take it Online
Social media is a great tool for boosting cookie sales. If a girl is 13 or older, she can post about cookies to social media channels herself, otherwise a parent will have to help. Just be sure to follow the guidelines on the Girl Scouts Internet Safety pledge and Safety Activity Checkpoints.

And, with the Digital Cookie platform, it’s easier than ever for friends and relatives that live far away to support your cookie sales. Cookies can be ordered online and shipped directly to the customer, wherever they live, through March 19. Just send them an email through your Girl Scout's Digital Cookie site so they can place their order!


Cookie Troop 100 Challenge 
In honor of 100 years of Girl Scouts selling cookies, one lucky troop from EVERY council around the country will win $100 each to put toward their awesome cookie Take Action or service project through GSUSA's Cookie Troop 100 Challenge. And one VERY lucky troop nationally will win $3,000 to super-power their project! 

Think Outside the Box
Encourage your girls to get creative and come up with fun and new ways to market their cookie sales. Hand out recipes that use Girl Scout Cookies to customers to encourage them to buy one more box. Make flyers to give to customers that explain each girl’s cookie goals and how they will use their cookie proceeds, along with information on how they can buy more cookies. Have a mobile cookie booth (ex. selling from a cart, wagon or sled) or organize a neighborhood blitz with a “Cookie Caravan.” The possibilities are endless! 

Follow Up!
Have girls reconnect with their customers toward the end of the sale. Customers may have eaten all their cookies and want to purchase more to last until next year. (We all know that Thin Mints are awesome frozen!)

Include an adult phone number or email address with initial deliveries in case customers want more cookies. Want to know an easy way to do this? Print out labels with parent/guardian contact information and stick them on each box.

Our Pinterest page is filled with even more fun and easy ideas for boosting your troop’s sales—and helping your girls learn marketing and creativity skills at the same time!