The Secret Little Agency’s Ludovica Damonte reflects on how the industry can do better to represent older people at their best. As marketing and advertising professionals, we’ve all been there. You’re building a presentation deck, filling it with strategies and creative ideas.
All that’s left is to make it sing with some eye-catching imagery. If you have a stock photo subscription, great. If not, it’s off to Unsplash for something that doesn't scream “stock.
” And when those options run out, you turn to Google Images. Before you even type, an image begins to form in your mind. Say you’re working on a deck for a dating app based in Asia.
You want a vibrant photo of a couple in love. You type: ' Asian couple in love, outdoors, having fun. Or maybe you go for something a bit more adventurous with an AI prompt: “Imagine an Asian couple smiling lovingly at each other while driving together on a sidecar motorbike, realistic, cinematic, 16:9 ratio.
” Results flood in. And I can pretty much guarantee that you’ll get what you imagined—maybe a bit cliché, maybe not as diverse as you hoped, but that couple will be there. Because what you pictured is almost exactly what Google or an AI will produce.
Now, let’s switch gears. Imagine you're reading a headline: Women are embracing the power of pole dancing to get fit and reclaim their femininity. Picture those women.
I bet that image, too, fits a certain mold—probably women in their 20s or 30s, full of youthful e.
