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The Girl Scout Cookie Booth Supporter Handbook

About the Girl Scout Cookie Program

The Girl Scout Brand Today: Our Unique Value Proposition

Who we are

Girl Scouts is a global movement that nurtures girls’ confidence, resilience, and life-skills—empowering them to lead with character and make a positive impact.

What Girl Scouts do

Girl Scouts build confidence and grow into empathetic leaders through hands-on experience and a strong sense of sisterhood.

How we support girls

We deliver measurable results through a research-backed program rooted in real-world experiences, skill-building, and emotional development.

The iconic Girl Scout Cookie Program is a pivotal part of the Girl Scout experience, and is the world’s leading entrepreneurship program for girls.

Nearly 700,000 cookie entrepreneurs participate in the Girl Scout Cookie Program®—the largest girl-run entrepreneurship program in the world—each year. DID YOU KNOW?

Only Girl Scouts sell Girl Scout Cookies. The cookies are an indelible part of the cookie program, which helps Girl Scouts learn life and leadership skills, while they have fun. Consumers know that when they purchase Girl Scout Cookies, they’re supporting lifechanging experiences for girls.

Key Cookie Season Dates

n Early January: National Girl Scout Cookie Season Launch

n End of Month February: National Girl Scout Cookie Weekend

n March 12: National Girl Scout Day (Girls Scouts’ Birthday)

n March 15–31: Last Chance Campaign

Check with your council representative for exact dates, as they shift slightly from year to year.

Other Relevant Dates For Marketing Activation/Social Activation:

n March: Women’s History Month

n April: Volunteer Appreciation Month

n June–August: Camp Season

n August–October: Climate Challenge/ Girl Scouts Love the Outdoors

n September: Back to Troop/ Fall Membership

n November: Entrepreneurship Month

n December 4: National Cookie Day

Allowing Girl Scouts to set up booths is

a win-win!

Boothing Supports Entrepreneurship

n Booths are a very visible way to demonstrate your philanthropic support of Girl Scouts.

n Gives Girl Scouts the opportunity to run their cookie business, as part of the cookie program, gaining valuable entrepreneurial skills along the way.

n Cookie booths increase Girl Scout Cookie sales, allowing girls more funds to seek out new adventures like going to camp or exploring museums.

Boothing Drives Your Business

n Consumers love to see and talk to Girl Scouts and, of course, eat Girl Scout Cookies—booths drive public and consumer awareness of the Girl Scout Cookie Program and bring traffic to your store.

n When you offer booth space, the Girl Scout Cookie Finder, a nationwide online tool to help customers find booth locations (with six million unique visitors), helps drive customers to your business. Booth sponsors that were able to track sales during active cookie booths saw an increase of +12% in sales.

What makes a successful booth location?

If you have multiple locations, consider this chart when choosing the best locations for Girl Scout booths.

Must Haves

n Safety-focused (visible, well-lit, etc.)

n ADA accessibility

n Space for set up

n Schedule alignment

n Accessible to underage patrons

Nice to Haves

n Cell service

n Options for indoor or outdoor booths

n Restrooms

n Ease of physical access (parking lot entrance)

Partner should have at least one of the following

n Heavy foot traffic

n High street visibility

n Strong social media presence

n Proximity to other high traffic stores or events

Exact booth setup location must be one of these options

n Sidewalk space

n Entryway/Exit space

n Drive thru space

These are just guidelines and best practices, so use your best judgment when determining if a location is both safe and will be effective. Also keep in mind that a council may deny a location due to proximity of an existing booth partnership.

Branding Guidelines

The Girl Scout brand is a powerful symbol of trust, community, and a champion of girls.

Unique in its rich 113-year history fostering leadership and values, the brand is still strongly relevant today and remains front-of-mind with consumers who share our values.

Support of Girl Scouts and local councils is showcased when boothing takes place at local businesses, and appropriate signage is visible to consumers who will be drawn to our mission.

With this in mind, it is critical that signage be consistent, so credible association with local councils and Girl Scouts is exhibited. Thoughtful use of local council logos, or the appropriate use of the overall Girl Scout trefoil is encouraged. By doing so, it protects our collective brand and avoids confusion among consumers.

Thank you for your role in protecting the use of boothing associations with Girl Scouts and your local council.

Approved branded visuals for showing your support

n Girl Scouts of the USA has created this graphic for retailers to use in their stores, on their websites, and on their social media platforms to acknowledge their affiliation with the Girl Scout Cookie Program. It works well as a window sticker, and on signage or buttons.

n Supporters can use this legally vetted design when communicating that they are a cookie booth supporter.

n Use of the national servicemark is only applied when there is a national partner in place (with contract determined nationally).

n Please do not alter this graphic in any way.

Download the visuals HERE.

Co-Branding Guidelines

n If you would like to use your business name and/or logo you will need to partner with your local council.

n Councils can share their local servicemark (in accordance with local agreements and approvals) and it can be used with your business name/logo.

n Never use a local business logo with the national GSUSA servicemark, as it would be creating a national association that does not exist.

n Ensuring there are differences between local and national use of servicemarks protects Girl Scouts funded partnerships, and respective funding obligations of sponsors.

Fun Patches

Glamp 2020

Do not use patch shapes or colors that resemble Girl Scout badges. Follow all guidelines regarding servicemark placement, clear space, and minimum size.

Patches are a great way to encourage girls and reward them for their entrepreneurial efforts. Patch designs must adhere to Girl Scout Brand Standards and Council Product Standards. Guidelines outlined on this page are general and not intended to be a complete guide. Please work with your local council to ensure your fun patch design adheres to our national brand guidelines.

Branding/Co-branding Guidelines

n A co-branded patch may include the cookie supporter’s business logo paired with the Girl Scout Council identification (i.e. Council Servicemark, Council Name written out, or the Council Acronym)

n The national Girl Scout servicemark may not be used on patches for local booth supporters , only for national sponsorships.

n The stand-alone Trefoil design may only be used if it is paired with the Council Name written out in text. Do not include a Trefoil if using the council servicemark or acronym which already contains a trefoil.

General Design Guidelines

n Preferred size for booth fun patches is no larger than 3 ̋× 3.

n Inclusion of any Girl Scout brand assets must follow the Girl Scout brand standards and be approved by the Girl Scout Council.

n To ensure distinction between our fun patches and our badges, fun patches must not be produced in the shapes utilized by our badges. They should NOT resemble badges, earned awards, insignia, or membership pins that are tied to official National Girl Scout program. Avoid using the shapes assigned to the grade level badges, except for the circle and rectangle, which are common shapes.

Please work with your local council partner when creating a patch. They will provide approval on designs that include Girl Scout branding, and advise on any manufacturing or legal requirements.

External Communications/Media Awareness

Cookie Booth Supporters are welcomed and encouraged to solicit media and drive attention to their booth. Below are some tips and tricks to get you started. Work with your council for even greater impact.

n Keep your pitches short and to the point and have visual assets ready to go. Grab attention with creative angles. Here are a few suggestions:

“The Girl Scout Cookie Program helps Girl Scouts become leaders, providing lifechanging skills. (Your company name here) is proud to offer space to these entrepreneurs to host their cookie booth. Please come to our store (add location, day and time) and support these amazing Girl Scouts.”

n Talk about how the Girl Scout Cookie Program helps make adventures possible. Work with your local council to highlight the stories of local Girl Scouts who have made an impact on the community in unique and powerful ways. Talk about how (your company) is proud to help Girl Scouts create storefronts where they sell cookies.

450 million Thin Mints are baked daily during peak cookie season—more than any other commercially baked cookie! DID YOU KNOW?

n Share Pictures and Videos. Media outlets are short-staffed and make use of brandprovided images and video assets more frequently. Reach out to your local council for authorized Girl Scout photography and videos you can share with local media outlets.

Flyers for use

Customize these flyers to include your store name and/or logo, and the dates and times of your cookie sale. Don’t add additional elements or otherwise alter the design.

Girl Scout Cookie Booth Here!

They’ve got all your favorites—stock up now before they’re gone for the year!

Every box you buy helps local Girl Scouts fund their next adventure!

Download the flyers HERE.

Store Signage

Booth supporter language:

n Girl Scout Booths Here!

n Girl Scout Cookie Booth Here!

n Girl Scout Cookie Booth Today!

Use this language whenever you talk about boothing at your stores. Some uses are on store marquees, sidewalk chalkboards, in store signage—like menus or flyers.

These pre-approved assets are available to use as is. Do not alter them in any way.

* Please remember if you want to use your business name/logo you must use the local council lock up and cannot use the trefoil alone.

Social Media Guidance & Assets

Easy social media tips for Cookie Booth partners:

n Share the Cookie Booth info. Post date, time, and location of the booth on your businesses’ social media pages. Keep it simple!

n Add the Cookie Finder link. Put girlscoutcookies.org in your Instagram bio or share it in a Facebook/ Instagram story. This lets people search for the closest cookie booth by their zip code.

n Use the hashtag. Add #GirlScoutCookieSeason to your posts, so people can find them.

n Repost Girl Scout content. Follow @girlscouts on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and LinkedIn. Share our posts to your business page.

n Keep the graphics as they are. We’ll share official images for you to use. Don’t alter them, but feel free to customize your captions.

Social Media Guidance & Assets

Sample captions—feel free to customize or mix and match.

�� Cookie lovers, it’s that time again! Swing by the Girl Scout Cookie booth on [DATE & TIME] and support local Girl Scouts making big impacts in their communities. Can’t make it in person? Cookies are just a click away: http://bit.ly/4foe94p #GirlScoutCookieSeason (Be sure to include the link in your bio prior and stories after to posting.)

Cookies today, futures tomorrow! Visit a Girl Scout booth at our [LOCATION] on [DATE & TIME] to support girls as they explore, lead, and unbox their futures. Can’t make it? You can still support your local Girl Scouts by ordering online today! �� http://bit.ly/4foe94p

#DidYouKnow purchasing Girl Scout Cookies helps girls find their voice, gain skills, and unbox their futures? �� Visit a booth at our location on [DATE & TIME] to cheer them on. Can’t make it? You can still show your support by ordering from a troop near you: http://bit.ly/4foe94p #GirlScoutCookieSeason @girlscouts