Given the industry The HatBerg Collective works in—personal care products—most of you reading this are likely connected to the distribution of such products.

We’re proud that several of our client companies have received awards for their products—yes, products that we helped get off the ground.

We recently blogged about ways to attract eyeballs, which included a section on awards. Especially for young companies—even those just getting started—winning awards gives you valuable credibility.

Adding an award logo to your marketing and packaging, where practical, gives people an added reason to trust you and what you offer.

The good news is that there are plenty of awards programs recognizing personal care products.

The better news is that there are award programs recognizing literally every facet of your business.

From packaging, print materials, video, and social media, to your company executives, HR achievement, events, corporate social responsibility, and your company as a whole, you have so many ways to attract kudos for your company.

In most cases you can nominate your company and products, but for some awards the awarding organization finds and selects candidates without any outside input. Below we offer some tips on how to garner awards.

• Just Do It. Many awards you are likely to consider have modest entry fees. For example, the cost for the Pure Beauty Global Awards is a very reasonable £125 for each entry (i.e., you may consider entering more than one category). Most brands will be able to afford that, and the ROI when you win is excellent.

  Evaluate your product line or whatever you are submitting (like a social media campaign or product video) and your budget, and decide which of various award opportunities align with your strengths. Then go for it!

Write Well. Here’s a little inside information: It’s generally not too difficult to win awards. Just between us…many of the organizations dishing out awards…are in business to dish out awards. Therefore, it’s in their interests to not be too strict. (One exception we can highlight are the Edison Awards, which has a very high bar.)

Obviously they don’t want to recognize shabby, controversial, or questionable products. But, if you’re starting with a worthwhile product or an above average, professionally produced marketing piece (again…whatever it might be), you definitely have a shot at winning.

The most important part of your entry is what you submit to support the nomination. Intelligent, engaging copy that tells a good (true!) story about your entry puts the odds in your favor. In our experience, the bar is a little higher for products than it is for such things as marketing entries.

In other words, the judges will want to know what differentiates your product and if it does what it’s supposed to. If appropriate, a clinical study or “evidence” that isn’t merely anecdotal will be a significant advantage. If your product is more of a cosmetic, reporting on the market’s positive reaction to your offering will matter.

Fortify Your Entry. A winning entry will include supporting materials and links, where allowed by the organization. Good writing will get you far, and a solid product video or social media effort or launch event will get you further. Sharing this (YouTube is your friend) as part of your submission will only help.

• Outside Opinions. If you’re not sure if what you have is worth nominating, ask friends and associates for their views. Ask them what they think about your company and products, and what they think would be worthy of an award. If they don’t know anything about what you offer, this is a great chance to get someone new interested in your products.

Assuming your marketing budget can handle it, there is very little downside to trying for awards.

We know of a company in its first year whose probiotic won a Bronze Stevie from the International Business Awards in the New Consumer Products category. At the time of entry, the company had sold 300 units and had the most basic, iPhone-shot product video. And yet, the judges saw a strong, proven product and made the award.

If you are curious about winning awards for your company and products and need any help or guidance, The HatBerg Collective can help! Let’s get you the recognition you deserve.