Feeling competitive? There’s no end of contests that spotlight and reward entrepreneurs for their business plans, new products, professional excellence and more. If you think you can’t win, think again. If you think it’s not worth the effort, read on.

Cash prizes can range from a few thousand dollars to seven figures. And the other benefits to you and your company from winning — or even taking part in — such competitions can be enormous.

Time well spent

Like any competition — or for that matter, investment — there’s no guaranteed return for the time and trouble to prepare an entry. But when there is, well, take a look:

David Becker, founder of Philippe Becker Design spent two days applying for a business-excellence award sponsored by the local chamber of commerce. He entered branding and marketing work his agency did for a local philanthropy, and landed a new $80,000 account because of the exposure.

Jennifer Elias and Julie Tucker filled out a 50-page application for the 2006 Make Mine a $Million Business contest sponsored by Count Me In for Womens Economic Independence and American Express. The result was a five-figure package of loans and advice for their game company, SmartsCo, and the attention of a major game publisher.

There are new contests all the time. In mid-’06, Product Partners LLC launched a search for the most innovative new beauty product in the world. The prize: A business-development contract with the Beverly Hills, Calif.-based company, specializing in direct and online marketing.

“Submitters have nothing to lose because at least they’ll get a team of experts evaluating their product and advice that should be worth thousands of dollars to them,” says Marina Randolph, Product Partners vice president of beauty. Finalists will be announced in November.

Attract fresh, helpful eyes on your enterprise

A big plus for startups, especially in business-plan competitions, is being forced to coldly re-examine their assumptions and the state of their companies. And it’s a chance to have established entrepreneurs and other experts pore over their plans and point up improvements.

Even if you don’t win, this process has obvious value. “There’s so much you learn when you take your plan and present it and get beaten up by your coaches,” says Tom Kinnear, executive director of Zell Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies at the University of Michigan.

Bob Mazur won more than $25,000 in a couple of business-plan competitions, including one co-sponsored by Ford Motor Co., and SCORE. “Applying forced us to update our business plan for the year, which was good because we had gotten so caught up in the business that we hadn’t taken the time,” says Mazur, founder of a Plymouth, Mich., company that markets the Purrfect Opener, a kitchen tool. “And then when you win, it provides validation and confidence in your plan and vision.”

You look marvelous!

Some successful entrants advise stressing presentation over your business plan or other documents. “It’s about ‘sex(iness)’ and a good idea that’s easy to communicate,” says Tom Szaky, co-founder and CEO of TerraCycle, a $1.5-million, three-year-old Trenton, N.J., startup that markets organic fertilizers through Home Depot, Wal-Mart and other chains.

It’s hard to argue with his track record. Szaky and his partner funded TerraCycle for the first year largely with the $70,000 they won by entering eight business-plan competitions – and sweeping them. “Judges aren’t reading the business plans,” he says. “It’s all in your presentation. We got the judges to sit up and say, ‘Wow, this is cool!’” One of his presentation slides showed a lawn sign reading, “Organic. TerraCycle Just Applied. Please Play.”

Don’t worry about someone stealing your ideas

Of course you want to protect your business plan, product prototype or other valuable intellectual property. So be sure the competition you enter has ironclad non-disclosure agreements that everyone – including judges – must sign.

Then quit worrying about it. “In truth, the process of building your company isn’t about following your plan — it’s about using the difference between your plan and your actual results to make the company better,” says Tim Berry, originator of Business Plan Pro software; president of Palo Alto Software, in Eugene, Ore., and a frequent judge in competitions. “Nobody else wants your business anyhow —– and your business wouldn’t be what it is without you running it!”

Our Bottom Line

Business-plan competitions and other contests represent a chance to toot your own horn, learn how to improve your startup — and maybe pocket some long green.