Marketing Lessons from the Girl Scouts

What Entrepreneurs Everywhere Can Learn from Cookie-Hawking Girls

It’s Girl Scout cookie time! Seeing the Brownie and Junior Girl Scouts set up to sell cookies in front of my local grocery store conjures up great memories for me. Camping, sing-alongs, and lasting friendships. I learned a lot from selling cookies – perhaps that’s what planted the seed of entrepreneurship in me at an early age. 

But as I approached the grocery store, I saw these little girls in a different light. They were enormously successful at what they were doing. That’s when I realized the Girl Scouts were employing some simple marketing rules that all of us grown-up entrepreneurs could learn from:

1. Start with a great product.
If you’ve ever tasted a Girl Scout cookie, you already know they’re absolutely delicious. If you haven’t, beware of those Thin Mints! Ain’t nothing thin about gobbling them down by the box-full – you can’t eat just one! But I digress… The product is phenomenal and the price is right. 

Make sure you’re selling what people want to buy, and not just selling what you want to sell!

2. Tell your story.
The girls at the selling table were quick to tell me about all the great things they did with their troop and how my purchase would support their activities. 

Every business, product or service has a unique story. What’s yours? Share your story and your passion with your customers and build loyalty.

3. Smile and have fun.
The girls were having fun selling and they smiled at everyone who came by, whether they bought something or not. Their enthusiasm was infectious.

Are you having fun? Is your positive attitude infectious? Or have your clients figured out that you only come calling when your mortgage is due?

4. Ask for the sale.
“Would you like to buy some Girl Scout cookies? Pleeeeeease?!” They weren’t afraid to ask for my business. 

Sometimes all you have to do is ask.

5. Turn a ‘No’ into a ‘Maybe’.
I watched a woman tell them no as she was on her way into the store, but the girls weren’t deterred in the least. So one of the girls asked, “how about when you come out? We’ll be right here!” 

A wise person once said “a delay is not a denial.” Sometimes when a customer says no they mean “not yet”. The magic is in the follow-up. Create a system to follow up with your sales leads.

6. Upsell.

After I committed to buying some Thin Mints, one of the girls asked if I would like to buy some Samoas as well.

What additional value-added products and services can you offer your customers? Can you package together common items into a set that you can charge more for?

7. Use Your Network.
Many Girl Scouts enlist the help of family members to help promote sales at their jobs. 

Who else can you join forces with or enlist to help you promote your products and services?

Kudos to the Girl Scouts for teaching valuable lessons to girls everywhere!

Comments

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