Entry criteria
Every applicant must evidence all of the following before an entry is published. These are verification criteria, not quality judgements: meeting them says an entry is what it claims to be, and nothing more.
| Criterion | What we check |
|---|---|
| Registered and trading | Company or sole trader registration, and evidence of current trading |
| Serves this trade | That beauty and wellness businesses are an actual customer group |
| Contactable | A working business contact route we have tested |
| Insurance | Confirmation of relevant cover in force, where the category requires it |
| Accurate entry copy | That the description matches the service actually offered |
| No prohibited claims | No superlatives, rankings, awards, guarantees or unverifiable figures |
| No conflict | That the applicant is not seeking editorial coverage as part of the arrangement |
Source: Digital Gloss entry criteria, published in full and applied identically to every applicant.
These are verification criteria. Meeting them says an entry is what it claims to be. It is not an assessment of quality and it is not an endorsement.
We check each criterion against public records and against the documents supplied. Where an applicant does not meet them, the application is declined and the fee returned in full.
What an entry contains
- Trading name, and registered name where different.
- Category, and up to two sub-categories.
- A description of the service, of up to 60 words, written by the applicant, edited only for length and for compliance with our claims rules.
- Areas served, and whether the business works with businesses of your size.
- One contact route.
- The date the entry was last verified.
- A visible paid entry label.
Claims inside entries
Entry copy is subject to the same claims discipline as everything else here. We will not publish, in an entry: superlatives, unverifiable performance figures, client results, comparative claims about other suppliers, or any claim that would require substantiation we have not seen.
Applicants are welcome to describe what they do, who they do it for and how they work. Anything that reads as a ranking claim, an award or a guarantee will be removed before publication.
Rates
Published, flat, and the same for every applicant in a category. There is no negotiation, no bundling with editorial and no premium placement, because placement is alphabetical.
Standard entry, 12 months
Name, category and up to two sub-categories, a 60 word description, areas served, one contact route, verification date and the paid entry label. Alphabetical placement within the category.
Additional category, 12 months
The same entry listed in a second primary category, where the business genuinely serves both. Alphabetical placement in each.
Criteria pre-check
We check your application against the published criteria before you commit, and tell you whether it would be accepted. Deducted from the entry fee if you proceed.
Rates are quoted excluding VAT where applicable. An entry runs for twelve months from the date of publication and does not renew automatically. We contact you before expiry.
What money does not buy here
- A position, a rank, a score, a badge or an award.
- A mention in an article, or influence over one.
- A link inside editorial content.
- Advance sight of anything we are publishing.
- Removal or amendment of an article.
- Introduction to a specific reader or business.
Declines, removals and refunds
If we decline an application, the fee is returned in full. If we remove an entry because it has ceased to meet the criteria, we refund the unused months. If you withdraw an entry within 14 days of publication, we refund the unused months.
We may remove an entry, with a pro rata refund, where a business no longer meets the criteria, where entry copy is found to be inaccurate, or where we are told of conduct that would make continued publication inappropriate.