Before I get into the “How To” point of this post, i’m SUPER excited to be giving away TWO cameras valued at over $650 each, PLUS a heap of amazing Munchkin Products. Scroll down at the end here to see how to enter.
When I first began this Instagram journey many moons ago, I was obsessed with styling corners of my home and taking photos of the magic I knew I had created. This was a time when marketing products online was more of a “secret kind of thing”. When you posted a photo, whether it be styled or candid, there was often products placed perfectly within the image and on purpose. BUT no one actually realised it was a marketing ploy, it was placed so effortlessly that you, as the consumer, fell in love with the image and instantly were enticed to BUY that product. Now days, advertising through the huge platform that Instagram has grown into has become less creative and far more “obvious-in-your-face”. This has also become a lot more annoying to see and less effective.
I’d love to see Instagram go back to how it once was, far more creative and a lot less shoved-down-ya-throat-sales-like. Obviously there’s always going to be marketing and sponsored posts, i’d be out of a job if this form of advertising completely vanished ahaha. But there’s certainly a trick to this marketing trade and it all comes down to product placement and how you photograph products for the iInstagram platform.
I was so lucky to be invited to today’s incredible Munchkin Event hosted by the hilarious mummy blogger, Olivia White. The day was set amongst the stunning trees in Kings Park, the perfect surroundings for our kids to play together and for us Mamas to practice taking plenty of candid snaps. Chatting to the Munchkin team and it’s clear that they too prefer naturally styled images including their baby and kids products. It’s far more effective to see a fun, playful, image styled in a natural setting, with a Munchkin cup or Bath toy sneaking it’s way in there somewhere.
My Tips & Tricks On Product Placement
1. Don’t be boring
Obviously you want people to genuinely engage with your images and be naturally enticed to buy the product you’re promoting. Product placement is essential and this means placing it in your image amongst every day life situations paired with other complimentary”things or props”.
For example: Show casing a coffee brand.
DON’T: Take a close up image of the coffee tin on it’s own. This is drab and boring.
DO: Show the coffee freshly made in a mug, in your hands, with a delicious biscuit. Add a news paper or book or a bunch of flowers. Create a moment in time that people will want to recreate.
2. Hero Colours
If you’re like me, then you love a certain colour theme. Matching your products to similar colours in your scene, is a clever way to create a beautifully styled photo. Make sure the product is the hero piece and stands out from the rest of the image.
DON’T: Let it blend in with the same colours
DO: Make sure it is the main focus but still blending in naturally
3. Lighting is key
Natural light really is amazing and the more natural light you find, the better your final image will be. Capturing products in natural light helps to bring them to life in the image and makes editing the image much easier as you have more control.
DON’T: Use a flash as it’s usually too harsh and doesn’t give a professional finish (if not used correctly). Also never shoot products in the harsh sunlight during the day.
DO: Find a spot indoors with the most light and make this your go to zone. OR shoot outdoors at sunset, find a shady tree an shoot amongst the shade. Too much sun can create horrible shadows
4. Tell a story with your image
You want to create a story and show why you genuinely love the product. You are showing products you actually love (I would hope this is the case), so it’s important to show you using the products in your every day life. Natural product placement like this is far more believable than a close up image with no soul or story back ground.
For example: Show casing a kids drink bottle.
DON’T: Take a close up image of a drink bottle on it’s own
DO: Show a child playing and happily using the drink bottle in a fun everyday scene
5. Create A Vignette
It’s ok to move things around for product placement and creating a vignette is the perfect way to create a “styled” image. You can’t always capture the natural images where your kids are running around, sometimes a styled image is just as effective as long as you create a type of vignette. This means your image contains more than one product, still relevant and organic to the purpose of the image. Place things so everything fits perfectly into your square frame. A vignette is often noticeably styled, but done so effortlessly and beautiful.
For example: Show casing a drink cup
DON’T: Take a close up image of a drink cup on it’s own
DO: Show the cup on the kitchen bench, with a tea towel draped, chopping boards layered in the foreground, other kitchen items can be seen in the image. This creates a story and a scene and shows the cup in a natural way.
6. Be Honest
I’ve been a Munchkin brand ambassador for the past 6 months and it’s been really important to me to show case the items I LOVE as naturally as possible. I WANT you to see Alaska actually using her straw cup, because she actually DOES use it. I WANT you to see her playing with her bath toys, because she actually DOES play with them (when she loved bath time that is #inserteyeroll). I want you to actually BELIEVE we love the items because it’s the truth! Product placement isn’t just about selling an item, it’s about honestly and sharing the moments of our lives that the products just so happen to be in.
The moment you start show casing products just for dollars and cents, then you’ll instantly lose your audiences trust and your styling won’t be effective.
For Example: Showcasing five different face moisturisers in the space of a week.
DON’T: different products, all different brands, claiming you love them all and use them all religiously is a NO NO. It’s not honest and people will see right through your images.
DO: Find products you actually love and only show case them. If you find something different later on down the track to showcase, then that’s organic and honest too.
Styling Details
@wildandfreeteepees_perth – Lace Teepee, boho style crate tables, cushions, vintage blankets & set up SHOP HERE
@graze_catering_perth – Food & Grazing table SHOP HERE
@partiesmadepretty – Balloon set up & styling (20% OFF code MISSKYREELOVES) SHOP HERE
GIVEAWAY
TWO prize packs to be won
Including a Sony X6000 Camera + Munchkin products worth over $1000 each
HOW TO ENTER
- Follow @Misskyreeloves & @munchkin_anz & @houseofwhite_
- Comment & tag as many mates as your heart desires HERE (more comments the more entries
- Create your own image #munchkinmomentanz with your favourite Munchkin product & post your picture on Instagram tagging us
- Use the hash tag #stylewithmunchkin (you can submit/ post as many entries as you like)
- The image can be as creative, candid, curated as you like
- Competition closes on 20/03/2018 at 11:59pm AEDST. See our T’s&C’s HERE
- Winner will be announced on our stories as well as on this blog here
Thank you to Munchkin for sponsoring this post. All pieces were hand chosen by myself, I’ve only shown what I truly love. All imagery, words and thoughts are completely my own.
Don’t forget to stop by @misskyreeloves for more inspo, shits and giggles.
