Marketing Week free essay sample

Being able to target certain people can be tricky sometimes specially if you don’t know what you’re doing or what your target is. You have to be able to sell yourself as well as the product and who better to sell Girl Scout cookies then young girls. The Girl Scouts mainly target the middle and upper class families with kids in the same age group as the girls in the Girl Scout organization. Cookie sales have grown into a major money marketing operation, bringing in over $714 million a year. However, cookie sales have declined one percent each year for the past six years. The Girl Scouts have made several changes to the program that they hope will help spark sales and create cost saving opportunities. The Girl Scout troops will be selling cookie boxes for four dollars apiece, up from the $3. 50 price mandated in 2006. The Girl Scouts will also be asking certain troops to reduce their cookie lineups to six varieties. We will write a custom essay sample on Marketing Week or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page 2) How well do you think the Girl Scouts succeed in relationship marketing? Examine the different factors on which relationship marketing depends. The top six selling cookies that the Girl Scouts sell are Thin Mints, Do-Si-Dos, Trefoils, Samoa’s, Lemon Chalet Cremes, and, Tagalongs account for about 77 percent of cookie sales, and many attempts to create cookies geared toward specific markets have not fared well in the recent years. The Dulce de leche cookies, based on classic Latin America treats were design to appeal to Hispanic markets as part of the Girl Scouts broader diversity initiatives. However, sales figures did not seem to indicate any particular market preference for that variety. A ‘’diabetic friendly’’ sugar free chocolate ship variety also failed to generate a significant sales boost. While each Girl Scout does not keep the income from her sales troop members see the direct benefits of their efforts these kinds of strategies help reinforce the broader purpose of the cookie program such as teaching girls valuable lessons in marketing and career training. The Girl Scouts specify five essential life skills that the cookie program focuses on developing goal setting, decision making, money, management, people skills, and business ethics. As Councils are shifting their focuses onto better business approaches and skill development, many are hosting sales training seminars. 3) Although some people take away clear benefits from selling Girl Scout cookies, not every Girl Scout is going to go into a marketing career, and many might find the job of cookie selling particularly difficult. Do you think the experience of cookie selling, and more generally the lessons you might learn from this course about marketing and sales, can still be beneficial, especially to someone who might find the activities challenging? The Council of Nassau country, New York brought in professional sales trainer Jeff Goldberg, who teaches the Scouts the same techniques he would use for any other business. Says Goldberg, ‘’ Goal setting, which was the first thing we covered. Is the first thing I cover with any group of sales people, if you don’t have a goal with any group of sales people? If you don’t have a goal, how are you going to get there? The Nassau county council is encouraging all girls to try to sell 100 boxes important sales strategies brainstorming methods and places for selling, self-presentation cues like smiling being polite, and thanking customers (even if they don’t buy anything); and turning around reluctant buyers with questions such as ‘’ what’s your favorite cookie? And’’ Can I get you to buy just one box? The Girl Scouts also emphasized the importance that girls personally do the selling; while parents must company Scouts during sales initiatives and can assist in other ways.