The sparkling crown. The glimmering sash. The heavy bouquet of roses. The spoils of a pageant winner are almost as shiny and satisfying as the title itself. And behind every smiling beauty pageant champion is a driven pageant coach who helped her to the top.

But what is a beauty pageant, anyway? These oft-satirized spectacles can be easy to mock, but what really goes on? Here are some quick facts and, if you pay attention, you might just learn how to win a pageant.

A beauty pageant, sometimes called a beauty contest, is a competition that shines a spotlight on the physical appearance of its contestants. Competitors also typically display a particular talent they have as well as participate in a brief interview with the host to show genuine flashes of personality.

These pageant questions can be anything from social issues to global political concerns, or really anything to do current events. A lot of pressure is put on the pageant interview because of these questions. The job of a pageant coach is prep the contestant for this interview so that she can shine and charm her way to the top of the pile.

Beauty pageants also tend to be comprised of makeup, hair and gown and swimsuit modeling portions. A pageant coach spends loads of time with the contestant before the pageant to ensure she is up to standard in all these areas. As such, pageant coaching can be a demanding job.

A pageant coach can be hired for training for any number of competitions, including any that may be for an exclusive ethnicity or racial group. Some examples of these are the Miss Chinese International Pageant, the Miss Black America pageant and the Miss Indian America pageant. No matter the circumstances, the pageant rules are typically the same.

The states of California, Florida and New York hold the most pageants. Additionally, more than 100,000 children under the age of 12 compete in pageants every year in the United States. Look for a good pageant coach to take you or your child to the top!