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Brand Marketing & Publicity Guidelines

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Represent the Girl Scouts brand in a unified and consistent way! Please utilize the below guidelines and resources below to do just that. Feel free to reach out with questions, needs for additional resources, or feedback. You can contact your GSACPC Marcom Team at marcom@girlscoutsaz.org.

2020-2023 Brand Refresh

As shared in member gatherings and communications, Girl Scouts of the USA began developing a brand refresh several years ago in partnership with councils. The rollout of this multi-year phased transition began in late 2020 and was fully public-facing as of July 2021. The goal is to complete the transition by the 2023 National Convention.  

Girl Scouts is a vibrant, living, and constantly evolving community — and so is our brand. That’s why we want everyone to adopt and embrace this new vision. You can help us by leveraging all the guidance and resources on this web page.

  • Detailed information and training are available to members on gsLearn. If you haven’t yet, we recommend first getting up-to-speed on the refreshed Girl Scouts brand by taking the Brand Refresh training in gsLearn. This will help you best utilize the information and resources on this page. If you need access to the training, please reach out to our Volunteer Learning Team.
  • Brand Refresh FAQs

Marketing / Visual Branding

When making a flyer or other branded element that will be shared with the public, you are required to include the Girl Scout logo and obtain Council permission to use it. 

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Download and read through our Graphic Guidelines.

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Develop a mock-up of the piece for approval. A sample logo can be downloaded here.

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Complete the One-Time Logo Usage Agreement.

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Upon approval (5-7 business days), you’ll receive the hi-res version of the requested logo and can finalize, print, distribute as planned.

Brand Checklist

Use this quick checklist to make sure your flier, form, or other Girl Scout piece follows key Girl Scout brand guidelines and standards:

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COLORS: All Girl Scouts materials should use three main colors: black, white and Girl Scouts Green. You can tell if it's Girl Scouts Green by the HEX number (#00b451), CMYK values (95/0/100/0), RGB values (0/180/81), or PMS number (354).
 

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FULL NAME: Do not use Scouts alone – ensure all references to the organization and program use our full unique name, Girl Scouts. Before shortening our Council's name to GSACPC, use the full name the first time it is mentioned with the acronym in parentheses—Girl Scouts–Arizona Cactus-Pine Council (GSACPC). Also note the proper location and use of the en dash and regular dash within our name.
 

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FONT: Please use Palatino for all Girl Scout branded materials.

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PHOTOS: Use close-up photos on your materials. Focus on the action and ensure girls’ diverse personalities and experiences are depicted, with an array of emotions (avoid using only posed smile shots); and in active, strong, and adventurous ways as much as possible (avoid posed, standing still shots unless critical to the content).

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CLIP ART: Avoid clip art whenever possible. Use photography or illustration instead, but do not “borrow” any licensed or copyrighted art.
 

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LOGOS: Put the Girl Scouts–Arizona Cactus-Pine Servicemark (logo) on every external/public document/communication. Remember to review the graphic guidelines and get permission to use the Girl Scout logo first, by completing the one-time logo usage agreement form for approval.
 

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CO-BRANDING: Ensure any public-facing material you create is branded Girl Scouts only, or obtain special permission from marcom@girlscoutsaz.org to promote partnerships.

Image Safety Guidelines

In order to keep girls safe, it's important to know whether or not you have permission to use images of our Girl Scouts!

Most Girl Scout members have already given permission to our Girl Scouts organization to take and use their photos to promote Girl Scouting when they registered as a member or signed up for a council event. However, those who opted out should be identified by the event organizer to ensure their photo is not distributed publicly. If you are unsure how to find this information in MYGS, reach out to reghelp@girlscoutsaz.org and we’ll help you.

A Media Release Consent form is required for all non-Girl Scouts being photographed at events. Include copies of signed forms for non-Girl Scouts who are pictured in a photo that is submitted to Council stories (stories@girlscoutsaz.org) for use in media, publications, etc.

Publicity / Telling our Stories

Girl Scouts have many wow-worthy stories to share and we want to tell them all in a way that helps us build community/public awareness and engagement with the overall Girl Scouts Movement. Please use these guidelines and resources for representing Girl Scouts – sharing your story with our Council, throughout your community, and with approved media.

Brand Voice & Editorial Guidelines

When we speak with one strong, unified voice, we establish our identity and become unforgettable.  Girl Scouts’ communications and storytelling should always be rooted in our values of self-expression, community, inclusion, integrity, and discovery. The Girl Scout legacy is spirited and storied. To move our story forward, we ensure our tone is encouraging, emotive, thoughtful, inclusive, and bold. 

Our Editorial Style Guide (refreshed version to come fall 2021) is a catalog of Girl Scout "house" style rules regarding frequently used (and misused) terms, Girl Scout principles and beliefs, punctuation, and much more. Keep in mind that adhering to these guidelines increases consistency across marketing and communications—which is key to telling the Girl Scout story in a unified voice.

Electioneering Guidelines

Girl Scouts has a congressional charter (a law passed by the United States Congress that states the mission, authority, and activities of a group), which carries just two restrictions: our organization shall be nonprofit, and be nonpolitical and nonsectarian. 

Whenever or wherever you represent Girl Scouts, remember to follow the electioneering guidelines provided by GSUSA and required to adhere to our charter. A few key guidelines: 

  • Members are encouraged to participate in civic actions, but cannot, in their Girl Scout capacity, participate in a political campaign. Of course, they may do so on their own time without using Girl Scout resources. 
  • Girls should feel free to wear their uniforms when advocating for an issue they care about, but they should not do so when advocating for a political candidate. 
  • Girls may also wear their uniforms when participating in nonpartisan voter registration and get-out-the-vote activities. 

Other activities – both prohibited and acceptable – are listed in our Electioneering Guidelines. 

Share Stories with GSACPC

Sharing a story from the girl, troop, and volunteer lens helps bring Girl Scouts to life! Share with us (and the world) how you’re experiencing Girl Scouts - whether you’re accomplishing an award, completing a service project, exploring the outdoors, or earning badges with your troop. 

When you tell your Girl Scout story, GSACPC and GSUSA can amplify it in media outreach, publications, blogs, social media, etc. To submit your story, provide a few sentences of what it’s highlighting, at least one photo (unless submitting a video), and your troop’s or IGM’s basic details including name, troop number, and city. You can submit an entry via email or by completing the following form.

Guidelines/Tips for Photo and Videos Submissions

Girl Scouts are the star! Be sure to center the story and supporting visuals around the Girl Scouts experience. For example, is she camping for the first time? Showcase her in action setting up a tent or the emotion of packing her camp gear! Aim for visuals that help tell the story as opposed to photos that capture a moment of it.

Be sure that photo(s) are clear and represent Girl Scouts! If submitting a group photo, please identify everyone in the photo. If submitting a video, make sure it's clear, captures the audio you intended, and is 1-3 minutes in length. 

Photo Tip: Use close-up photos on your materials. Focus on the action and ensure girls’ diverse personalities and experiences are depicted, with an array of emotions (avoid using only posed smile shots); and in active, strong, and adventurous ways as much as possible (avoid posed, standing still shots unless critical to the content).

Reminders
  • Sharing your story on social media? Tag us by using @GSACPC and using the following hashtags: #GSACPC #GirlScoutsAZ #GirlScoutsInAction
  • Love sharing all things Girl Scouts? Become a Media Ambassador and receive ongoing story/content assignments. 
  • Review the Image Safety Guidelines under the Marketing / Visual Branding dropdown. When sharing photos on social media, confirm consent from parents and do not post personal troop or girl information including location, age, and full name. Review our Social Media Guidelines below for more. 
Media Outreach
Council Outreach Efforts

GSUSA handles all national media outreach and GSACPC staff reaches out to all TV, print, and radio outlets in our region. The GSACPC Marcom team works on securing positive coverage of Girl Scouting all year long and executes strategic campaigns to support new member recruitment, the cookie program, high awards, and more. The only way this happens is by members like you sharing their stories and/or joining our GSACPC Media Ambassador Team!

Media Ambassadors

The Media Ambassador program, organized by GSACPC’s Marcom team, is a group of Girl Scouts from all levels who represent the Girl Scout brand and GSACPC through various media opportunities. This year, our program has some additional elements to recognize girl participation and offer leadership opportunities for our more experienced Ambassadors. 

Volunteer / Member Outreach Efforts

GSUSA handles all national media outreach. GSACPC Marcom staff reaches out to all TV, print, and radio outlets in our region and manages all Girl Scout brand-related media inquiries and crisis communications. Please always refer and reach out to marcom@girlscoutsaz.org regarding these media relations and communications. 

Before taking your girl or troop story directly to the press, or helping council-wide recruitment or other campaign efforts, please review our resources and guidelines, and then focus on your hyper-local neighborhood newspapers and radio shows broadcasting in your immediate area to avoid overlapping outreach. If you wish to contact or have been contacted by other media, please coordinate with marcom@girlscoutsaz.org to avoid causing confusion for our media friends or duplicating efforts.

Steps to Pitching a Story to the Media
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Review Pitching to the Media & Best Practices.  

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Review the How to Use the Volunteer Press Kit.

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Gather your story details, resources (ex: links if any, examples), and photos or video. 

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Explore the Local Media List spreadsheet of local media outlets to pitch the story to. Ensure your audience is hyper-local to your area, or that you have appropriately collaborated with the Council’s Marcom team on pitches with a wider reach.

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Pitch the media using best practices and the Story Pitch to Media – Email Template.

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Let the GSACPC Marcom Staff know you’ve secured a media placement by sending an email with the details to marcom@girlscoutsaz.org. Let us know what you’ve secured, if you need additional help, and when the story is scheduled to run/print. 

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Submit the story to Council to share on GSACPC social media platforms, blogs, and GS Connections magazine. 

GSACPC Press Kit
Additional Reminders
  • Follow our editorial guidelines (refreshed version to come fall 2021) to ensure we are communicating with a unified brand voice for Girl Scouts.
  • Follow our social media guidelines when sharing on social media representing the organization. 
  • Follow the electioneering guidelines provided by GSUSA when acting as a Girl Scout representative, employee, volunteer or Girl Scout in any electoral activities. 
  • Be sure to keep us in the loop – when you share your Girl Scout story, GSACPC and GSUSA will use it in media outreach, publications, etc.
Reactive / Crisis Communications 

If you are approached in the community or by media regarding sensitive topics or controversy, please remember to refer or loop in our GSACPC Marcom Team. 

When asked about issues you are unaware of, keep in mind the following key steps:

  • Please refer the inquiring party to girlscoutsaz.org/fortherecord or Council Communications staff.
  • Our priority is to let girls learn and have fun. Ask adults to keep adult conversations to themselves. For example, Approaching girls with salacious materials at a cookie sale is not acceptable, should be reported to Council and will be investigated.
  • Safety is important. We don’t want members putting themselves in an untenable situation. This is especially true if a person becomes agitated in conversation – please remove yourself and girls from the setting.

Take the time to learn about common rumors and prepare to effectively communicate in uncomfortable situations that mostly commonly arise during cookie season. There is also a handy flier for volunteers and parents/caregivers to review and keep on hand during cookie season. 

Social Media

We look to our volunteers, members, and supporters to help GSACPC continually reach new people, and ask that you follow, like, share, and comment on our social media pages as much as possible. We hope to widen our reach and increase visibility through credible people who have Girl Scout knowledge and connections – like you! 

Marketing Campaign Resources

Press Kit
Additional Reminders
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