Seeing through a different lens

A Super Bowl ad that has stuck with me is “Seen on Pixel” from Google.

The ad highlights Real Tone, which is the culmination of years of development efforts to ensure that Google’s camera technology accurately represents all skin tones. That feature was launched last October, as part of the company’s Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro phones.

Google CMO Lorraine Twohill says, “For too long, camera technology, including our own, has failed people of color by either making them look washed out or too unnaturally bright or dark.”

Coincidentally, I am reading a book called Rebel Ideas, which focuses on how cognitive diversity in institutions can help solve complex problems or surface unseen problems. I will confess that I never thought about how different skin tones are represented in photographs. However, the ad not only explained the problem, but did so in a way that touched the heart.  

Moreover, the engineers who worked on the technology benefited tremendously from having open discussions with colleagues of color inside Google to understand their experiences with cameras, both from behind the lens and in front.

It is easy for diversity marketing to come off as pandering – or worse. But this seems like an example of an ad that is truly culturally relevant. And unlike some Super Bowl spots, it told an emotional story not just for the sake of entertainment, but to highlight a point of differentiation for the brand.