How COVID-19 Changed Girl Scout Cookie Marketing

The first official Girl Scout Cookies were sold right here in Philadelphia.

In the 1930s, a troop baked cookies in the commercial oven at the Philadelphia Gas and Electric Company and sold them out of the store windows.

Each year since, young female entrepreneurs have come up with creative ways to sell Thin Mints, Samoas and other lesser flavors.

Of course, this year looks a little different.

COVID-19 and social distancing guidelines have paused in-person sales. Girl Scouts have had to get creative to close cookie deals.

Girl Scouts Pivot to a New Selling Strategy

The Girl Scouts of America recognized its pandemic pivot couldn’t just focus on selling cookies. It also had to advance its mission to empower and help girls learn skills “essential to leadership, to success and to life.”

While only 3% of cookie sales in 2020 were online, Girl Scouts of America have introduced tools on its website to connect buyers to local scouts and keep cookies top of mind for consumers. It’s even introduced a new flavor – the French-toast-inspired Toast Yay – and announced it’s retiring its S’mores cookie.

One key ingredient has been Girl Scouts’ partnership with Grubhub to deliver cookies safely to consumers.

For girls, the partnership swaps door-to-door sales experience with something decidedly more digital. The scouts themselves are responsible for tracking and fulfilling orders and managing inventory using Grubhub’s platform.

It’s a win-win-win. Girl scouts raise money and learn business skills, Grubhub gets positive PR, and people get cookies safely delivered to their door. It’s a smart pandemic pivot worth supporting. But you have to act fast – online sales end March 21.