I saw this week that Woman & Home have announced the winners of their 2020 beauty awards. Brands love to win awards (FYI best innovation goes to Murad Environmental Shield Vita-C Glycolic Brightening Serum), and readers love them just as much. Nothing is more simple for them than clear signposting to products that have been selected by experts.

I’ve also noticed that writers that are emphatic with their recommendations really get their readers/followers engaged. Take India Knight in the Sunday Times – she loves a superlative. This is the BEST serum I’ve ever tried. The MOST EFFECTIVE body lotion. The LONGEST LASTING foundation. My PR friends tell me her recommendations translate to sales.

Winning awards isn’t as easy as securing a quick recommendation, but I think that extra credibility is always valuable, regardless of whether your clients like them or not. So how do you give your clients the best shot at winning?

Make sure your product gets into the journalist’s hands and they actually try it. This will involve persistence, and the sending of multiple products.

Try a circuitous route and send some products to the editor of the whole magazine/supplement. Quite often they are involved in the judging process and are likely to influence the outcome.

Don’t underestimate the power of your personal recommendation. If you are authentically passionate about a product’s efficacy, that holds weight. A catchy sell like ‘booblift in a jar’ helps too.

Good luck.