Girl Scouts Go Digital for Cookie Sales
Posted on December 1, 2014
It's nearly time for Girl Scout cookies once again. But this year you can buy your Samoans or Thin Mints online. Yes, the Girl Scout cookie sale has gone digital.
The Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA) announced the new program which is called Digital Cookie. The Girl Scouts have resisted online cookie sales, because the whole point of the sale is to teach entrepreneurship, sales and how to interact with customers. But cookie fans have been demanding a way to buy the cookies online, and the Girl Scouts responded.
They've decided to use the web to teach the girls all about online marketing, app usage for sale and ecommerce. The new program works two ways. You can't just go to the Girl Scouts website and buy cookies. You still need to find a Girl Scout. She can either sell you the cookies using a smartphone and an app or she sends you an email invitation to her special cookie selling website.
One of the big concerns of young girls having websites and selling things on the Internet is online predators. Digital Cookie is all about safety. Each girl and her caregivers must take a an Internet safety pledge before they set up the web-based platform. The caregivers or guardians must approve all the content on the site, including photos and videos. The girls will not be personally identified on their cookie sites for safety reasons.
Girl Scouts will also be selling cookies the old fashioned way, so if you don't know any girl scouts and none of your work colleagues has a scout at home, you can probably find them outside of your local grocery story during your local cookie selling time period. This year's cookie varieties include Thin Mints, Caramel deLites/Samoas, Peanut Butter Patties/Tagalongs, Shortbread Trefoils, Do-si-dos/Peanut Butter Sandwich, Cranberry Citrus Crisps, Lemonades, Rah-Rah Raisin, Savannah Smiles, Thanks-A-Lot, Toffee-tastic and Trios.
Not all varieties are available in all areas. You can go to the Girl Scout website, girlscouts.org, and plug in your zip code to find when the cookies will be available in your area and where you can find them. Or you can download the cookie finder app there.