📣 Calling all VAs, Graphic Designers, Social Media Managers - we need you! + LinkedIn Adds New Video Ad Features, and more

A big welcome to our weekly Digital Women Community round-up! 

There’s just 72 hours to go until the final deadline for the 2025 Digital Women Awards! Entries close this Monday - and that’s it, it’s the final deadline extension, so after Monday the forms will be closed.

We’re particularly interested in seeing entries from any of the following:

• Virtual Assistants and/or Virtual Assistant Agencies: enter here.
• Digital Communities: enter here.
• Graphic Designers: enter here.
• Digital Trainers or Educators: enter here.
• Social Media Managers: enter here.
• Website Designers: enter here.
• Copywriters: enter here.
• SEO Specialists: enter here.

There’s also lots of other Awards for you to enter too, including Digital Entrepreneur, Digital Freelancer, Carer of the Year, Role Model, and Digital Woman for Good. You can find all of the entry forms here.

If you’re still on the fence about applying - and we get it! - we’ve put together some reasons below about why we think it’s a really good idea to get your entry before Monday:

Increased Recognition:

Just being shortlisted for a Digital Women Award can position you as a recognised leader in the digital world. Being shortlisted can enhance your credibility, setting you apart from competitors.

Networking Opportunities:

The Digital Women Awards Ceremony welcomes attendees from every part of the digital world and from across the globe. Sponsors and speakers also attend and network, and it offers you an excellent networking opportunity, enabling you to connect in-person with people you may have only met online. 

Increased Visibility:

Submitting an entry into the Digital Women Awards can enhance your business profile. Not only will any publicity associated with the Awards expand your reach, it also gives you an opportunity to welcome a broader audience to your business. 

Setting You Apart in the Digital Industry:

Being shortlisted for a Digital Women Award indicates that your business is among the best in the digital industry, providing you with an excellent marketing opportunity to help attract new business and retain existing customers.

It's totally FREE to enter the Digital Women Awards. You don't have to attend the Awards Ceremony to win, as our Awards are independently judged. You can enter up to three Awards.

We are really looking forward to seeing your entries!

🎉 Community Updates

• 🌟 Digital Women Annual Conference and Awards Ceremony - 17th September 2025. Get your tickets to the annual London Conference and Awards Ceremony! Get yours here - spaces are limited.  It’s going to be an amazing day of inspirational speakers and a celebration of every single person in our community, all set within the gorgeous Connaught Rooms in London. EARLYBIRD PRICES ENDING SOON!
• Community Wins in our WhatsApp Members Club:
• Hannah S has had a brilliant week: she completed her Digital Women Awards entry, secured two new clients and launched an incredible new collaboration!
• Heather P has had a number of ongoing projects come to fruition which means the second part of the year is going to be very busy for her!
• Tracey had three website projects on the go this week, and was also doing a number of discovery calls too!
• 📅 Lunch & Learn: Every Other Tuesday - Members only but one session free for non-members. Perfect for learning new business and marketing skills and connecting with like-minded women. The next one is on Tuesday 13th May at 12pm. This time we’ll be joined by Emily Hatton, who will be talking about ‘Measuring the Metrics to Drive Your Business Success’.

🎉 Digital News Roundup for women in digital and business 

We’ve included the biggest headlines this week in Social Media, Digital Marketing and AI and a quick overview of each story; if the story piques your curiosity then we’d love you to go on and explore further, and let us know what you think! 

Social Media

→ LinkedIn Adds New Video Ad Features

→ Instagram Launches Lockable Reels with The Weeknd

→ Instagram’s Edits App Gets First Updates

LinkedIn Adds New Video Ad Features

LinkedIn is rolling out new video ad options to help brands make the most of growing engagement. At its NewFronts debut, the platform introduced "First Impression Ads" to ensure your video is seen first in the feed and improved Connected TV placements. Event Ads also now have more promotion options. With video content generating 1.4x more engagement than other posts, these updates offer more ways for brands to connect with their audience.

Instagram Launches Lockable Reels with The Weeknd

Instagram has officially launched lockable Reels, allowing creators to hide content behind a secret code. The Weeknd is the first to use the feature, sharing a clip from his film “Hurry Up Tomorrow” that can only be viewed with a special code. This new option could help creators engage niche audiences or offer exclusive content to fans, while businesses could use it for promotions or region-specific updates. It’s currently in testing, but it’s one to watch for future opportunities.

Instagram’s Edits App Gets First Updates

Instagram has rolled out its first batch of updates for the Edits video editing app after just a week of release. The new features include 125 fonts, 15 voice effects, and an “Apply All” button to streamline your editing process. Meta also promises weekly updates, which might eventually include AI-powered options (for a price). For now, these tools are free to use, giving creators more flexibility to add personality and flair to their video content.

Digital Marketing News

→ Snapchat Announces New Advertising Tools

→ Meta Unveils New Ads Features

→ Meta Announces New Instant Form Feature in Ads

Snapchat Announces New Advertising Tools

Snapchat introduced several new advertising tools and features aimed at enhancing brand engagement through augmented reality (AR) and artificial intelligence (AI). These updates are designed to provide advertisers with more immersive and personalized ways to connect with users. The Sponsored Snaps feature allows brands to send full-screen video ads directly to users' Chat Feeds. For instance, Wendy's achieved nearly 52 million impressions in a single day and increased their Public Profile followers by 54% using Sponsored Snaps.

Meta Unveils New Ads Features

Meta unveiled several new advertising features across Facebook, Instagram, and Threads, focusing on enhancing creator partnerships and video content. Meta is testing video ads on Threads, aiming to integrate them seamlessly into users' feeds. These ads are designed to help businesses reach audiences across platforms. 

Meta Announces New Instant Form Feature in Ads

Meta has introduced a new feature for Instant Forms in lead ads, allowing advertisers to enable a "Select All That Apply" option for multiple-choice questions. By checking the "Allow multiple responses" box, the response format changes from radio buttons to checkboxes, enabling respondents to select multiple answers. This enhancement aims to improve the accuracy of responses, especially for questions where multiple answers are valid. The feature is currently available to a limited number of accounts, with its official rollout status yet to be confirmed.

AI News

→ Lightricks launches LTX Video (LTXV)

→ Google Unveils Gemini 2.5 Pro

→ Apple Developing a Custom Chip for Smart Glasses

Lightricks launches LTX Video (LTXV)

Lightricks, the company behind Facetune and LTX Studio, has launched an open-source AI video model called LTX Video (LTXV). This model sets a new benchmark in generative video technology by enabling the creation of five-second video clips in just four seconds, achieving real-time processing speeds of 24 frames per second at a resolution of 768×512 pixels 

Google Unveils Gemini 2.5 Pro

Google has unveiled Gemini 2.5 Pro, its most advanced AI model to date, designed to tackle complex tasks with enhanced reasoning capabilities. This model is now available to developers and Google Workspace users with Gemini Advanced access. Gemini 2.5 Pro excels at creating visually compelling web applications and agentic code applications. It also offers improved code transformation and editing capabilities, making it a powerful tool for developers.

Apple Developing a Custom Chip for Smart Glasses

Apple is working on a custom chip for its smart glasses, drawing inspiration from the Apple Watch's low-energy components. This chip aims to efficiently handle multiple cameras and support AR experiences. Mass production of this chip is expected to begin by late 2026 or early 2027, with the smart glasses potentially launching around that time. The glasses are anticipated to be manufactured by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) and may debut within two years.

EXCLUSIVE OFFER for SocialDay Social Media Marketing Festival in May 2025:

£150 off SocialDay socialday.co.uk with the code Lucy150 (available on either the 3 day ticket or on individual day tickets)

Digital Women Member’s Club

Don’t forget to join us here, if you’re not already a member. By joining us, you’ll not only have access to an amazing community of Digital Women on WhatsApp and Facebook, but you’ll also be able to come along to twice-monthly online Lunch & Learn + Networking sessions, as well as receive exclusive discounts on our in-person events, plus have access to a huge amount of digital learning, resources, talks and guides.

And that’s all for this week! We hope you have a wonderful weekend.

Thought for the week: 

"You may encounter many defeats, but you must not be defeated." 

— Maya Angelou

💛 We’re a 365 day community and we’re here when you need us! 

All the best

Lucy & Emily O Digital Women