7 steps to styling your product for Christmas

If you’re a small business owner selling online, you’ll recognise the need to step up your styling at this time of year.

From mid-November onwards, Instagram and Facebook feeds become flooded with small businesses placing their best styling foot forward. There’ll be metallic decorations, tinselled trimmings, little red berries and Christmas trees starting to poke their heads into product pictures, everywhere. Gift guides take over the average e-newsletter and online shopping carts overflow with multiple purchases.

But styling your products for the festive season doesn’t have to be an expensive exercise. It may be your shop display, your Instagram pictures or your website homepage that needs a mini Christmas makeover. So what can you do to make your products stand out from the crowd, at such a competitive time of year?

Styling your products on a budget can be easy if you:

Decide on your hero product

Which of your products are popular throughout the year? And what sells well over the Christmas period? Decide on a handful of key products that will be featured in your display or photo shoot.

Set up your styled space

Where is your display going to be positioned? Make sure there is enough room for the display and that you don’t overcrowd the area. Lots of product won’t necessarily increase people’s interest. The eye is attracted to white space and clean lines.Try a wall of product as a point of difference. This inexpensive wire rack was purchased from a hardware store. Note the one Christmas decoration on the left hand side. Simple yet effective.

Create a clean back drop

Blank, white walls will come in handy when you’re photographing product. If you need your products and Christmas decorations to stand out, white works best.

Consider flat lays for Instagram

Flat lay photographs means setting up the product so it lays flat on an even surface (typically a white background works best). The photograph is taken from a bird’s eye view. Table tops, floors and beds make the best back drop for a flat lay. Evenly place your images and add in some Christmas props. I used a string of cheap Ikea beads in this shot.

Invest in some affordable props

When styling your product, think beyond the traditional Christmas tree option. Look for different coloured decorations that don’t scream Christmas. It means your display can look classic. Try to place some flowers, holly, or berries in your pictures like this. The tiny baubles and diamond shaped decoration are from Ikea.

Get personal

What else does Christmas mean to you? Think about how you can inject that holiday, end-of-year feeling into your photographs and marketing. It might be about positioning your product amongst things you’d take to the beach on a summer vacation. You could also write a personal note in your e-newsletter, for a change.

Start now

It doesn’t hurt to start your styling process early. It takes time and patience to neatly style an image for social media or setting up a display in your store, so best to start now.

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