“Hi, my name is _______________ (say first name only).

I’m a Scout with Pack 1906 here in Lorton / Mount Vernon.

I am selling popcorn to help raise money to go to Scout Camp (or other major activity). By buying popcorn today, you’ll be helping me earn my own way to camp next summer and do fun things with my Pack all year long.

(Hand the customer the Take Order form and a pen and point out your favorite item. Make sure it is a $20 or more item).

You’ll help me, won’t you?

Below are snippets and highlights from the Popcorn Guy blog. Links are provided if you’d like to read the articles in their entirety.

1. Discover the Goal http://popcornguy.org/2014/05/07/how-to-teach-youth-to-sell-part-1/

• Explain why you are selling popcorn
  A Scout may say, “Why do I have to sell popcorn. You can just pay for it.”
  This is a great time to have the conversation about the money you make and all the things which are paid with those funds like a place to live and food. Teach him selling popcorn is ‘his way to help pay for his activities’. For Boy Scouts this a great transition into the Personal Management Merit Badge.

• Break out the Prize Form

2. Know your product https://popcornguy.org/2014/05/13/how-to-teach-youth-to-sell-part-2/

• Their favorite product

• Understanding the individual items in the larger packages
  What’s in the Cheese Lover’s Collection? Chocolate Lover’s Collection?

• Understand what is in each product
  Does it contain nuts? Gluten?

• Pricing

3. Create a sales plan http://popcornguy.org/2014/05/21/how-to-teach-youth-to-sell-part-3/

• Set a Sales Goal

  • Total Cost of their Unit’s Annual Program

  • Commission Percent they receive from the sale of popcorn

  • How much the Scout family is willing to contribute to pay for their Scouting expenses

• Drill into the numbers

  • We need to know how much the Scout sells per hour using different methods:

  • Show & Sell average sales per hour, Door-to-Door average sales per hour, etc.

  • How many hours does the Scout needs to sell to reach his goal?

• Write it down

  • Set scheduled times with the Scout to complete the number of houses he needs to hit and arrange the time slot to sell in front of stores. Break down the goal for each day whether it is houses, dollars or hours. If the Scout reaches the goal for the day have a mini reward.

4. Create a pitch (Marketing) http://popcornguy.org/2014/05/28/how-to-teach-youth-to-sell-part-4/

• Introduction

• What you are selling

• Why you are selling it

• Ask the customer to take action

• Close

Sample Door-to-Door Script

“Hi, my name is _______________ (say first name only).

I’m a Scout with Pack 1906 here in Lorton / Mount Vernon.

I am selling popcorn to help raise money to go to Scout Camp (or other major activity). By buying popcorn today, you’ll be helping me earn my own way to camp next summer and do fun things with my Pack all year long.

(Hand the customer the Take Order form and a pen and point out your favorite item. Make sure it is a $20 or more item).

You’ll help me, won’t you?

• Preparation

  • To prepare Scouts to sell popcorn, adult leaders and parents should help Scouts develop their own “elevator pitch” or script with the above elements to share with customers.

  • TRAIN YOUR SCOUTS & HAVE THEM PRACTICE

• Marketing

  • What is the ‘product’ you are selling? - Focus on Scouting instead of the popcorn.