Know what you are looking for; start with educational beauty product resources

As you research, realize that there is a lot of information about personal care products available. It is helpful to look around and understand the key pieces of research and current news found on beauty and personal care product information websites.

I recommend: Look at websites that provide information about "green" products in the beauty product industry. The National Geographic Society website has a Green Guide that lists a dozen ingredients in personal care products that are particularly harmful. Of course, as a green website, they have a certain point of view that any non-natural chemicals can be harmful. However, they have done the research, and websites like National Geographic Society are more reputable than others. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) features a comprehensive list of companies that do and do not test on animals.

Consult the trusted names in beauty care resources

There are a number of consumer watchdog organizations that do nothing but test products and try to find which are helpful and which are harmful. These organizations are usually more mainstream than eco/green sources. This can be a good thing because they tend to be more credible, but may also be a detriment if they do not consider all of the issues.

I recommend: Consumer Reports is a trusted name for general consumer product reviews. They also do personal care product reviews. Many of these reports center on how well the product performs, but they do consider safety. Also, the website ExpoTV has a number of non-biased beauty and personal care product information tips.

Subscribe to beauty product information blogs

The blogosphere gets mixed reviews as a work of journalism, but people will always like to complain. Blogs about the beauty product industry are no exception. By visiting blogs regularly, you can keep up-to-date on what your customers are saying about different products and what they like and dislike about them.

I recommend: Create a list of popular blogs that contain tips and information about the beauty and personal care product information industry. I am Fashion is a very credible blog, while Apparel Search Company has a list of fashion related blogs. Take what they say with a grain of salt, but if you see several blogs comment about certain products, take those comments seriously.