Let’s Talk about Lifestyle Mockups: A Shared Practice, Not a Secret

[Susang6]

Lifestyle mockups and lifestyle advertising have been around for decades. This isn’t some new invention or hidden secret that only a few know of.  it’s a practice that’s been taught in fashion merchandising schools, used in catalogs, and refined in every era of product presentation. From department store window displays in the 1950s to styled magazine ads in the 70s, lifestyle imagery has always been about one thing: helping customers imagine themselves with the product.

Fast forward to today, and POD sellers are just continuing that tradition in digital form. And here’s the truth: nobody should be paying to learn how to do lifestyle mockups. The information is already out there, free and accessible. A quick Google search will bring up millions of “how‑to” guides, templates, and tutorials.

What really makes lifestyle mockups successful isn’t the technical side  it’s the ideas and prompts behind them. Talking with other POD creators, sharing what settings work (cozy home scenes, outdoor adventures, styled fashion shots), and swapping prompts is often the best way to learn. Community conversations spark inspiration that no single class can capture.

I have another discussion at the community forum where creators are sharing what free AI’s are best for mockups, what prompts work, and problems that they are having.  It’s a great discussion because we are helping each other. That is how you learn more about lifestyle mockups. 

I searched online for the historical timeline of mockups through the years and this is what I found…sharing just for fun.

1950s–1960s: Department store catalogs and window displays staged products in lifestyle scenes.

1970s–1980s: Magazine ads and fashion shoots leaned heavily on lifestyle imagery to sell products.

1990s: Digital tools like Photoshop made polished mockups easier to create without full photo shoots.

2000s–2010s: E‑commerce marketplaces adopted lifestyle mockups as standard practice for online selling.

Today: POD sellers use digital mockups and AI tools to place products in endless lifestyle contexts.

Let’s talk about lifestyle Mockups:

How do you use lifestyle mockups in your store?

What prompts or settings have helped your products connect with customers?

Do you prefer natural everyday scenes or more styled, aspirational ones?

[Susang6]

Okay I will answer the questions first 

How do you use lifestyle mockups in your store?

I fall back on my years of being an Area Visual merchandiser and use mockups the way I did when I did window displays. The lifestyle mockup helps customers picture my products in their own lives. A mug looks boring floating on a white background, but put it on a messy desk with a laptop and suddenly it feels like their morning.

What prompts or settings have helped your products connect with customers?

I lean into prompts that feel lived‑in: “cozy kitchen table,” “sunny porch,” “romantic cottagecore is my focus for spring lifestyle mockups” I think customers want to see the product in a scene that feels familiar.

Do you prefer natural everyday scenes or more styled, aspirational ones?

Depends on the product. Everyday scenes make mugs, totes, and homegoods feel relatable. But if I’m showing off something seasonal or decorative, I’ll go aspirational styled like a magazine spread. It’s a balance: sometimes you want “real life,” sometimes you want “Pinterest life.”

[KeegansCreation]

Trying to do multiple pics and blocks of text and it just looked terrible so never mind.

[CrazyMermaid]

When you take courses from a professional, you aren't just paying to learn a technique, you are paying for their critique of your work to ensure that your design is high quality. So yes I have paid to take many art classes and photoshop classes and advertising classes from pros to make sure that my work is first rate. 

[Susang6]

My post was not about art classes. I’ve taken many courses throughout my career in fashion merchandising, and as a writer I’ve also taken creative writing courses, as well as internet marketing. I think it’s always good to keep learning and stay up to date. But my post was specifically about lifestyle mockups as a merchandising practice. These have been part of retail and advertising since the 1950s, taught in fashion merchandising programs and refined through decades of catalogs, window displays, and styled ads. I draw on my own background in visual merchandising, where lifestyle displays were always about helping customers imagine products in their own lives. That’s why I see lifestyle mockups today as a continuation of that tradition, not a secret skill. What makes them successful isn’t just technique, but the ideas and prompts behind them, and that’s why community conversations are so valuable.  I’d like to keep the focus on lifestyle mockups themselves. In my post I asked a few questions about how creators are using them in their stores what kinds of scenes or prompts have helped products connect with customers, and whether you lean toward everyday settings or more styled ones. I’d be interested in your answers if you’d like to share with others.