Summarize the case study.

1. How has the selling process evolved for the Girl Scouts over time?

2. Why is it important to be able to adapt to the changing environment of sales?

3. What does their customer relationship management entail?

4. How will customer relationship management software fit into the overall success of a business?

5. Research different CRM programs that are on the market. What do you find is consistent with the programs you looked at?

Girl Scouts of the USA have been part of the American traditions for over 100 years, and their cookies have been part of American culture for almost as long. On March 12, 1912, in Savannah, Georgia, Juliette Gordon Daisy Low founded the first Girl Scout troop. She believed in the power of every girl and wanted to help girls to discover their strengths, passions, and talents. She succeeded. Girl Scouts of the USA currently have 2.7 million members (1.9 million girls and 800,000 adults, as of October 2016).

Girl Scout Cookies made their first appearance in 1917 as a way to finance troop activities. The cookies were home- made by the girls under the supervision of their mothers. The cookies continued to be made by the scouts themselves until the 1930s when the switch was made to commercially baked cookies. By 1937, more than 125 troops were holding cookie sales. Cookie fundraisers were suspended during World War II, when the girls sold calendars due to shortages in sugar, flour, and butter. But after the war, cookie sales increased, and by 1948, 29 bakers were licensed to bake Girl Scout Cookies. The The 1950s brought a boom in the popularity of suburbs, and Girl Scouts began loading up their wagons and selling their cook-- ies door-to-door and at tables in shopping malls. (These sales methods are still used today.) Over the years, the Girl Scouts of the USA have added and removed cookie varieties, redesigned packaging, and changed officially licensed bakers. At their National Girl Scout Cookie Weekend 2016 (February 2628), they revealed their newly redesigned cookie packaging. They also unveiled the first gluten-free Girl Scout Cookie. In an effort to embrace technology and teach lessons about online marketing, app usage, and e-commerce, they launched their Digital Cookie platform. It is a safe and interactive way for scouts to sell cookies online while still retaining the one-to-one personal selling approach that is so important to the fundraising campaigns.

On National Smores Day 2016 (August 10), the Girl Scouts of the USA announced the next big change for the ever-popular Girl Scout Cookie. They would add two new varieties of Girl Scout Smores cookies to their lineup, the first new additions since 2015. The new cookies will make their first appearance in select markets in the 2017 cookie season.

The new cookies were inspired by the smore, another iconic American treat popularized by the Girl Scouts of the USA. One of the new cookies is a crispy graham cookie double dipped in a crme icing and covered in a chocolate coating. The other cookie is a crunchy graham sandwich cookie with a chocolate and marshmallowy filling.

The new Girl Scout Smores cookies capture the adventurous spirit, love of the outdoors, and feeling of community that are synonymous with Girl Scouts, said Sylvia Acevedo, interim CEO of Girl Scouts of the USA. As we approach the 100th anniversary of the first known sale of cookies by Girl Scouts, it only seems natural to celebrate it with a new cookie flavor that ties to our heritage and captures the adventurous, take-charge, and civic-minded spirit of our girls. Now consumers will have another delicious way to support girls as they hone leadership, financial literacy, business, and people skills, while using their cookie earnings to address community issues, or invest in fun and educational experiences.

Girl Scouts are responsible for the popularity of the smore going all the way back to the 1920s. Originally named Some More, the recipe was first published in a 1925 issue of Girl Scout Leader magazine, and then Memories in a 1927, publication. To celebrate National Smores Day and the new cookies, Girl Scout councils around the country hosted campfires, unsurprisingly featuring smores. They also asked customers to share how they smore on social media using the hashtag #NationalSmoresDay and tagging the organization @Girl Scounts.