My Cookie Venture

It takes a lot of planning to run your Girl Scout

Cookie™ business. Start by expanding your

knowledge of your business resources and

customers. Think about how much time you can

devote to your sales goals. When you’re ready,

create a business plan that will guide you to

your most successful cookie season ever!

Steps1. Get prepared for your cookie business

2. Set goals and a budget

3. Create a mission statement

4. Plan to reach your customers

5. Write a team business plan

PurposeWhen I’ve earned this badge, I will know how to

create a business plan for my cookie business.

girl photo

My Cookie Venture

Cadette

Step 1: Get prepared for your cookie businessBefore starting this year’s cookie season, research everything you can

about it. Learn what’s new this year. What are the cookie costs and

varieties? What are the rewards? Find out how to sell and track your

digital sales progress on the Digital Cookie®/Smart Cookies® site.

Choices—do one:

Get to know your order card. Write your name and goals on your

card and read through it. Look over sections designed for you, like

the rewards. Get familiar with sections helpful to customers, like the

types of cookies and nutrition facts. Think about how you’ll use the

order card to help your customers choose what to buy.

⇨ For more fun: Decorate a clipboard for your order card. You

might paint it, put stickers on it, or write motivational statements.

Create a cookie sales tip sheet. Hold an information session with

your sales team to research everything you need to know about

your business. Go to the “Girl Scout Cookie Program FAQs” at

girlscouts.org/cookieprogramfaqs to find product information, how

to buy and sell cookies, and more. Create a cookie sales tip sheet for

your group with the facts and ideas you want to use and remember.

Play a team cookie game. Print cards with images of the cookies.

Have two of your troop members hold up a cloth or sheet, creating

a wall. Another member will hold the cards on one side of the sheet

while two competing members stand on the other side. When the

sheet is dropped, the first person to name the cookie and two main

ingredients of the cookie wins. Have fun adding other cookie facts to

the cards and making the game your own!

Before you explore,review the “Supplemental

Safety Tips for Online Marketing”

and “Digital Marketing Tips for

Cookie Entrepreneurs and Families”

at girlscouts.org.

Earn your Cadette Cookie Entrepreneur

Family pin!

Go to girlscouts.org/cadettecookiepin

to find the requirements.

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http://www.girlscouts.org/cookieprogramfaqs

http://www.girlscouts.org

http://www.girlscouts.org/cadettecookiepin

Brand: The name, symbol, mark, or logo a company uses to identify their product. A brand is also the way a

customer feels about and experiences the product.

Cookie entrepreneur: When you sell Girl Scout Cookies, you set goals, talk to customers, make decisions,

make mistakes, and try again. This is all part of being an entrepreneur!

Digital Cookie/Smart Cookies: A way for customers to buy cookies online. Depending on where you live, you

will either use Digital Cookie (for Little Brownie Bakers councils) or Smart Cookies (for ABC Bakers councils)

to manage digital sales.

Digital marketing: Using technology, such as computers, smartphones, and social media, to reach

your customers.

Entrepreneur: Someone who creates something or finds a way to help people and solve problems.

Entrepreneurs often use their ideas to create a business.

Feedback: What someone thinks about your ideas or how you run your business.

Iterate: Repeatedly changing something to end up with a result you want. Entrepreneurs go through the

entrepreneurial process, a cycle that creates changes and makes improvements. You iterate your cookie

business each year as you grow new skills!

Mission statement: This explains the purpose, values, and goals for your business.

Order card: Where you’ll find the names of the cookies, what they cost, your customer’s information, and

the number of packages you sell.

Package goal: How many packages of cookies you and your troop plan to sell.

Pitch: What you tell your customers to get them excited about buying cookies from you.

Troop goal: What you plan to do with the money your troop earns selling cookies.

Troop proceeds: The portion of cookie sales kept by troops.

Venture: A task or an act in which there is risk or the result is not certain. When you run your cookie

business, you are starting a business venture with your friends!

Safety FirstFind out how to keep your cookie business safe. Go to girlscouts.org to find safety

guidelines for selling digitally, door-to-door, or at a cookie booth.

Words to Know

My Cookie Venture | 3


Step 2: Set goals and a budgetEvery business venture needs goals and a budget! Do one of the three choices and follow these steps:

1. Set a goal based on what you want to do with your troop proceeds. Some examples: meeting supplies, field

trips, Take Action projects, or your Girl Scout Silver Award.

2. Vote on your choices.

3. Determine how much each goal will cost, then calculate the total cost. Use the “Cookie Goal and Budget

Planner” on page 5.

4. Find out how much your troop will get for each package sold, based on your council and budget.

5. Divide your goal cost by the per package amount to find out how many packages you need to sell to reach

your goals.

6. Set your individual sales goal to support your troop goal.

7. Make adjustments to your plans or budget, if needed.

Choices—do one:

Divide it up. Hang three posters around your meeting room that say: Take Action and Awards, Field Trips and

Adventures, and Troop Meeting Activities. (If you’re not meeting in person, you can do this online.) Do your own

research on each topic—be sure to check your council website. As you find ideas, use sticky notes to post them under

each category. After everyone’s posted, discuss as a team and vote for the ideas you like best.

Use teamwork. Have each team research a goal topic: Take Action and Awards, Field Trips and Adventures, and

Troop Meeting Activities. Include ideas and the cost for each goal. Have each team present their findings to the group

for discussion and a vote.

Get feedback. Find out what other Girl Scouts have done with their cookie money. Get ideas from cookie business

advisors like troop leaders or Girl Scout alums too. Write a set of goals that you and your team like the best, then get

feedback from your cookie business advisors about your list. Make changes to your plan based on their feedback. Are

there some goals you can defer to next year or do you need to adjust your plans or goals in any way?

4 | Cadette

Cookie Goal and Budget Planner

Goals: This goal will cost:

#1 $

#2 $

#3 $

#4 $

#5 $

#6 $

Goal total cost (how much money you need to earn): $

Troop proceeds per package: $

Total goal cost divided by troop proceeds per package = Cookie package goal

Sample troop budget:

Goal cost: $1,000

Troop proceeds per package: .65 (proceeds vary by council)

$1,000 divided by .65 = 1,538 packages troop needs to sell


Step 3: Create a mission statementA mission statement defines your business’s reason for existing. It

communicates what you stand for and your goals. As you work on

your statement, think about what your cookie business does, how

it does it, and why. A mission statement is an important internal

guiding document for all members of a business.

Choices—do one:

Research mission statements from inspiring companies. Look

up the mission statements for several brands. What are their values?

How do they practice those values? How do they create a connection

with customers? Did learning about the company’s mission impact

your feelings about their products? Use what you find to create your

mission statement.

Talk to a businessperson. Look for someone who sells online or has

a location where people shop in person (also known as a brick-and-

mortar business). Find out what their mission statement is and how

it applies to their everyday business. Write your mission statement

and ask them to give you feedback.

Get inspired by the Girl Scout mission statement. Take a look

at the Girl Scout mission statement: “Girl Scouting builds girls of

courage, confidence, and character, who make the world a better

place.” How does this fit with your mission statement? Research

other powerful mission statements. Then write your own: What is

your common goal for your cookie business? How does your business

stand out and what is your public image? MY

PROMISE

MY

FAITH

6 | Cadette

8 | Cadette

Step 4: Plan to reach your customersHow can you reach your customers and build your network of

support? Check out “Digital Marketing Tips for Cookie Entrepreneurs

and Families” at girlscouts.org/cookiedigitalmarketing for ideas.

Make sure to create a sales pitch for selling cookies. Do one of these

choices and come up with a marketing plan.

Choices—do one:

Get creative with digital marketing. With your team, come up

with new ways to reach customers. Create a fun video to show them

how you’ll use your cookie money, or make an entertaining social

media and email campaign to send updates to customers. With your

customers’ permission, capture and share the supportive things they

say about your business. This shows potential customers that buying

from you is a great investment! Ask your loyal customers

to share your Digital Cookie/Smart Cookies link or sales pitch

video online.

Research your favorite brands. Check out their websites and

social media accounts. How do they build a relationship with

their customers? What can you do to safely connect with online

customers? Think about your target customers and where they’re

most active online. Use what you find to create a marketing plan for

your business.

Ask an expert to help take your plan up a notch. Share your

sales pitch and marketing ideas with a businessperson and ask for

advice about developing a new customer base. Find out how you

can tell your story in a powerful way. Consider how you might reach

customers online and in person. Use what you learn to come up with

a marketing plan.

Think Like a Cookie

EntrepreneurGetting feedback can help

improve your ideas and the decisions you make as

a cookie entrepreneur.

1. Get feedback ⇨ 2. Analyze feedb

ack ⇨ 3. Select changes to make ⇨ 4. M

ake ch

ange

s ⇨

5. T

est a

gain

⇨


http://www.girlscouts.org/cookiedigitalmarketing

Cookie Business PlanKey areas to include:

● Mission Statement: From Step 3.

● Our Team: Who is on your cookie business team and what are their roles?

● Calendar: Think about dates relevant to the cookie season, such as when to

start planning, hold events, have team updates, and communicate with your

customers. How often will you send emails and post on social media?

● Goals: From Step 2: What are your goals for spending your cookie money? How

will you make sure you’re on track to meet your goals?

● Sales Goals: How many packages do you plan to sell? Where and how will you

sell? Digital? Door-to-door? Cookie booths? How will you track your sales?

● Budget: From Step 2.

● Marketing Plan: From Step 4: Who are your customers and how will you market

your business? How many videos will you make to promote your business? Are

you hosting cookie booths or promoting the cookie donation program? Include

any digital marketing strategies you came up with in Step 4.

Cookie Business PlanKey areas to include:

● Mission Statement: From Step 3.

● Our Team: Who is on your cookie business team and what are their roles?

● Calendar: Think about dates relevant to the cookie season, such as when to

start planning, hold events, have team updates, and communicate with your

customers. How often will you send emails and post on social media?

● Goals: From Step 2: What are your goals for using your cookie money? How will

you make sure you’re on track to meet your goals?

● Sales Goals: How many packages do you plan to sell? Where and how will you

sell? Digital? Door-to-door? Cookie booths? How will you track your sales?

● Budget: From Step 2.

● Marketing Plan: From Step 4: Who are your customers and how will you market

your business? How many videos will you make to promote your business? Are

you hosting cookie booths or promoting the cookie donation program? Include

any digital marketing strategies you came up with in Step 4.

10 | Cadette

Step 5: Write a team business planCreate a team business plan to help guide your efforts. Make sure to

get into the details. See “Cookie Business Plan” on page 10. The more

specific your plan is, the more likely you are to complete each step.

Choices—do one:

Add a risk management plan. Expect the unexpected in your

cookie business. What can go wrong? How can you be prepared?

On a white board or large paper (or online), create three columns:

High Risk, Medium Risk, and Low Risk. With your team, come up

with things that might affect your business, such as: not enough

people buying cookies, not enough girls to sell cookies, internet

problems for Digital Cookie/Smart Cookie sales, bad weather, or

other impactful factors. If possible, talk to an entrepreneur to find

out what problems they have faced. Make a list of things that could

go wrong. Place each problem in the column you think it belongs,

then come up with a solution or backup plan for each. Include this

in your cookie business plan.

Check out other cookie products. Compare packaging, price, and

ingredients of one kind of Girl Scout Cookie with another brand

of cookies. Note the way other cookies are displayed in stores

and advertised. Find out how other companies sell cookies online.

What are the benefits to buying Girl Scout Cookies online?

What makes your cookies stand out? Find quick answers and

product information in the “Girl Scout Cookie Program FAQs” at

girlscouts.org/cookieprogramfaqs. Use what you learn to inform

your business plan.

Ask a businessperson for feedback. Write up your business plan and

find someone in a related business (or with a business background) to

help refine your plan. Use this feedback to make changes.

Earning your Business

Creator badge will give you

even more tools to write

a business plan and make

your ideas better.



TM ® & © 2021 Girl Scouts of the United States of America. All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical methods, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system, now known or hereinafter invented, without the prior written permission of Girl Scouts of the United States of America (GSUSA), except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permissions requests, write to GSUSA at the address below or visit the www.girlscouts.org website to access permission request forms.

First published in 2021 by Girl Scouts of the United States of America 420 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10018-2798 www.girlscouts.org

12 | Cadette



Volunteer’s Guide to the My Cookie Venture Badge*

*Detailed choice activities, meeting tools, and additional resources and materials can be found within the Volunteer Toolkit on my.girlscouts.org.

Find tips and ideas to help you guide your troop through this badge.

Step 1: Get prepared for your cookie business • 30–40 minutes

Ask: What do you know about your cookie business? Share: Before starting this year’s cookie season, research everything you can about it. Learn what’s new. What are the cookie costs and varieties? What are the rewards? Find out how to sell, send emails, and track your digital sales progress on the Digital Cookie®/Smart Cookies® site.

Choices—do one:

● Get to know your order card. Instruct Cadettes to read through their order cards. Provide highlighters and suggest color coding information like cookies and costs for customers and goals and rewards for themselves. Provide clipboards and supplies for personalization.

Materials: order cards, pencils, highlighters, clipboards, decorative items (stickers and the like)

● Create a cookie sales tip sheet. Break up Cadettes into teams and direct them to the “Girl Scout Cookie Program FAQs” at girlscouts.org/cookieprogramfaqs. Instruct Cadettes to create a cookie sales tip sheet on a shared document where they can add cookie facts and ideas for their cookie business.

Materials: computers or tablets

● Play a team cookie game. Divide Cadettes into groups of four or five. Share a description of the game from the badge booklet. After a few rounds, encourage players to create their own cookie game using the same cards or adding new ones. Have groups share their game with the troop!

Materials: sets of cookie image cards or computers, smartphones, or tablets; cloths/sheets, index cards, pencils

Step 2: Set goals and a budget • 30–40 minutes

Ask: What are your goals for your cookie business this year? Share: Every business venture needs goals and a budget! First, you need to decide on your goals, and then you can figure out your budget.

Choices—do one:

● Divide it up. Have Cadettes follow the directions in the badge booklet to decide on troop goals. Help facilitate voting by proposing an online poll. As a troop, determine the costs of individual goals, total cost, and how many packages they’ll sell to reach their goals. Together, use the “Cookie Goal and Budget Planner” worksheet and steps on page 5 of the badge booklet to complete the troop’s budget.

Materials: computers, smartphones, or tablets; posters, sticky notes, pencils, “Cookie Goal and Budget Planner”

● Use teamwork. Divide the troop into three teams (utilize breakout rooms for virtual meetings). Each team picks one goal topic to research: Take Action and Awards, Field Trips and Adventures, and Troop Meeting Activities. Each group reports ideas and costs for their topic to the troop. Together, use the “Cookie Goal and Budget Planner” worksheet and steps on page 5 of the badge booklet to complete the troop’s budget.

Materials: computers, smartphones, or tablets; “Cookie Goal and Budget Planner”

● Get feedback. Use the “Communication Manager” in the Volunteer Toolkit to reach out to your network of Cadette families. Ask for help connecting with Girl Scout alums who can help the troop set goals and plan their budget. Invite them to the meeting and share the “Cookie Goal and Budget Planner” worksheet on page 5 ahead of time. Follow the steps in the badge booklet to complete the troop’s budget.

Materials: “Cookie Goal and Budget Planner,” paper, pencils, or pens

Step 3: Create a mission statement • 20–30 minutes

Ask: Why is your cookie business important to you? To the troop? Share: A mission statement defines your business’s reason for existing. Create a mission statement that shares what you stand for and what your goals are. Think about what your cookie business does, how it does it, and why.

CADETTE • My Cookie Venture | 1

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TM ® & © 2021 Girl Scouts of the United States of America. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical methods, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system, now known or hereinafter invented, without the prior written permission of Girl Scouts of the United States of America (GSUSA), except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permissions requests, write to GSUSA at the address below or visit the www.girlscouts.org website to access permission request forms.

First published in 2021 by Girl Scouts of the United States of America, 420 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10018-2798, www.girlscouts.org

Choices—do one:

● Research mission statements from inspiring companies. Have Cadettes write down three brands they like or know. Divide the troop into teams and have them look up and discuss the company mission statements. Guide conversations by using questions in the badge booklet. Have the young entrepreneurs reflect on their business and mission, then write their own mission statement. Suggest that they design a sign (on paper or digitally) for their cookie booth that tells customers about their mission.

Materials: computers, smartphones, or tablets; plain paper, drawing and coloring supplies

● Talk to a businessperson. Invite a shop owner to the next meeting. Share the purpose of the step and activity ahead of time. After discussing the guest’s business experience, Cadettes can reflect on their own business and write mission statements. Encourage them to ask for feedback, then design a sign to share their mission with customers.


● Get inspired by the Girl Scout mission statement. Ask, “How does the Girl Scout mission statement fit with your Girl Scout experience?” Have Cadettes research more mission statements or prepare a short list of mission statements for them to guess the companies. Have these cookie bosses reflect on their own business and mission, then write their own mission statement. Suggest that they create a sign (on paper or digitally) to add to their cookie display.


Step 4: Plan to reach your customers • 20–30 minutes

Ask: How can you reach your customers and build your network of support? Share: Check out “Digital Marketing Tips for Cookie Entrepreneurs and Families” at girlscouts.org/cookiedigitalmarketing and other resources on girlscouts.org for ideas. In this step, you will create a sales pitch and come up with a marketing plan.

Choices—do one:

● Get creative with digital marketing. Use the “Communication Manager” in the Volunteer Toolkit to share the purpose of this step and activity directions with families ahead of time. With support from families, Cadettes can get creative with online marketing.

Materials: computers, smartphones, or tablets

● Research your favorite brands. Have Cadettes research their favorite brands and find out how they use social media and online marketing to build customer relationships. Ask, “How can you connect with your customers online?” Direct Cadettes to “Digital Marketing Tips for Cookie Entrepreneurs and Families” at girlscouts.org/cookiedigitalmarketing.


● Ask an expert to help take your plan up a notch. Consider utilizing an online council forum for Cadettes to share their ideas. With an adult, they can record and share sales pitches and ask for feedback.


Step 5: Write a team business plan • 20–30 minutes

Ask: What steps do you take to run a successful cookie business? Share: Create a team business plan to help guide your efforts. Make sure to get into the details. See “Cookie Business Plan” on page 10. The more specific your plan is, the more likely you are to complete each step.

Choices—do one:

● Add a risk management plan. Divide Cadettes into small groups. Provide each group with paper and pencils to create a three-column organizer for high, medium, and low risk (or create it digitally). Cadettes brainstorm things that could go wrong or problems they could face with their cookie business. Have them categorize each as high, medium, or low risk, then come up with a solution or back-up plan. Before groups start, go over one example together.

Materials: paper, pencils

● Check out other cookie products. Create small teams, one for each kind of Girl Scout Cookie. Each group selects a cookie, then researches the brand. Cadettes will compare packaging, price, ingredients, and how another brand sells their cookies. Ask, “What makes Girl Scout Cookies stand out?”


● Ask a businessperson for feedback. Discuss the “Cookie Business Plan” on page 10 with Cadettes and have them write up their own. (They can work independently or in teams.) Use the “Communication Manager” in the Volunteer Toolkit to reach out to Cadette families—ask if anyone with business experience can help refine cookie business plans.

Materials: “Cookie Business Plan”; paper and pencils or computers, smartphones, or tablets

CADETTE • My Cookie Venture | 2





My Cookie Venture

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