Staging for Holiday Let Properties
Have you ever wondered what the ‘right’ amount of staging is for a holiday let property? Here’s my view based upon 8+ years of photographing hundreds of holiday let properties.
What is Staging?
I guess the first thing to cover is what do I mean by staging!
I see staging as adding props to a holiday let, Airbnb or short term rental when it is being photographed to help potential guests visualise themselves staying at the property. Some people would call these lifestyle images.
Staging Vs Tweaking
Prior to photographing a property, there is always an amount of ‘tweaking’ that is needed to ensure any photos captured allows the property to be presented in it’s best light.
This includes thing like:
Ensuring dining tables, chairs, sofas, beds, etc. are all straight compared to walls
Smoothing out bed sheets
Straightening out and ‘poofing’ cushions. Also checking that cushions are the correct way up!
Checking any lamp shades aren’t crooked and that any join lines in lamp shades are turned towards a wall
Removing any waste bins in bedrooms, bathrooms and the kitchen
Checking any towels presented are nicely folded
I generally perform these checks as I walk the property when I first arrive to make sure I don’t forget anything!
If it’s of help I have a webpage of tips that are useful for owners or hosts to do prior to a photo shoot.
What Is The ‘Right’ Amount Of Staging For A Holiday Let?
Quick Answer - There isn’t one! However in my experience, some amount of staging does add to a property and helps potential guests visualise themselves staying and ‘living in’ a holiday let property.
I would suggest there are four levels of staging you could consider:
No staging
Simplistic staging
Simplistic staging + Dining table setting
Extensive staging
No Staging
It is understandable that some owners are cautious about presenting their property with props as they are concerned that guests will expect to see any props offered to them if they were to visit.
For instance if you have a breakfast scene with some croissants and orange juice, the guests may expect these within a welcome pack.
This is a valid concern however from my experience guests will largely recognise the difference between staging and any welcome basket.
A good property description always helps here in making it clear what is, and isn’t provided to your guests.
Simplistic Staging
Providing some simplistic staging allows you to have a setup that could be placed in a few different positions.
Some simple staging options could include:
Cafetière of coffee, a couple of mugs and some cookies or pastries on a plate, all on a tray
A couple of croissant on a plate with a couple of glasses of orange juice
A fresh vase of flowers
Fresh uncut bread on a chopping board with some olives or similar
A jug of water with cut lemon in plus some glasses
Wine or fizz in a wine cooler with a couple of glasses (some hosts are understandably reluctant to show alcohol in photos)
These different setups can be placed on worktops, coffee tables, beds, etc. as appropriate and moved around between rooms - but not too much - You don’t want the same setup in every photo!
Simplistic Staging + Dining Table Setting
To take your staging to the next level you could consider fully setting the dining table for a dinner service in addition to the setups previously mentioned.
You can go as far as you would like here however it is more important here to only include cutlery, crockery and cookware that are included with the property.
It is always wise to set the table for as many people as your property sleeps; for instance to allow guests to visualise themselves having a family dinner around the table.
Extensive Staging
If your property warrants it, you could consider providing some more extensive staging. In addition to the above, you could create some additional setups to place around your property. Some ideas include:
A scene of a coffee with a (timeless) book. I would generally avoid magazines as they date
Adding some additional simple plants into bathrooms
A charcuterie board
A bowl of fresh fruit
A chess board setup ready to play
Conclusion
I hope this blog post has helped you think through the different levels of staging you could provide as part of a photo shoot.
If you would like to gain some high quality photos for your holiday let property, feel free to contact me.
Staging Examples
