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Taken at the top of Painswick Beacon in The Cotswolds, Ashley and I were having a romantic moment after a long walk in which I’d taken a wrong turn and nearly had us squished like a fox on a B road!

I’d surprised her with a trip having suggested she pack a swimsuit and her passport.

As we drove down the M4 she kind of twigged as we zoomed past the Heathrow turn off!

We stayed at Byfield House which caught my eye as it’s the number one B&B in the Cotwolds on Trip Advisor.

Jill and Brett’s hospitality was just amazing. Greeted like long lost friends with TWO bottles of wine, we were sloshed before we got to the pub to devour wood pigeon, duck and fish and chips!

£75 a night to stay in an antiques haven, with a healthy breakfast instead of a heavy cooked one, meant were able to enjoy some great food after exploring the countryside at the Royal Oak and St Michaels Restaurant the following night who did us a nice chocolate cake for our anniversary….after we’d scoffed some sumptuous puddings and cheese!

[Loosens waistband.]

We had such a lovely time. Think everyone should make a trip this part of the world as it’s just 2 hours max from London.

Seems we have a habit of climbing hills with romantic notions.

The last time was when we got engaged!

Just posted on the Microsoft Advertising Blog about our digital advertising case studies which are all up on our ad site in Silverlight glory.

Includes insight from campaigns we’ve run for Pepsi, Sony, Sprint, Coca-Cola, Bing, Cadbury, P&G, Toyota, Kia, Nivea and loads more.

Pretty cool that you can pick and choose via different criteria.

The team say it’s set to grow as we get more and more advertisers to partner with us on talking about their campaigns in detail.

The man, the myth, the legend that is Brian “Gordon’s Alive!” Blessed has just become the voice of Tom Tom after a Facebook campaign where he garnered over 25,000 votes.

As a commenter on YT says, why hasn’t he been given a knighthood?

Did drama with his daughter Roz at university. Lovely family!

Just listen to his thank you to see why I’m so proud to be British!

The Wall Blog

Link Bait! How to Stand Out on Twitter

Microsoft Advertising Blog

Microsoft’s Rick Song Wins The Advertising Club President Award

Microsoft Advertising Unveils Online Circulars for MSN Local Edition (U.S.)

Introducing Our New UK Performance Team

Xbox Lips Lite Case Study has Games Advertising Singing Digital

Microsoft adCenter Blog

Yahoo! and Microsoft Search Alliance News: Yahoo! Advertisers Will Begin Transition Soon

SEM Intermediate Series: Simple Uses of Dynamic Text in Your Microsoft adCenter Campaigns

Back to School PPC Optimization Tips, Research and Downloadable Keyword Lists

Bing UK Summer Ice Cream Giveaway Photos and Fun Stats

Nice little video which tells the story behind the Search Alliance plus Microsoft and Yahoo’s commitment to our advertisers.

Been sent this video by Miguel at Simply Zesty which outlines some nice statistics specific to social media in the UK.

The source is apparently the Oxford Research Agency according to a comment on their YT channel which suggested we Google them.

I found them right as rain on Bing too!

Nice way to promote your agency, by being helpful and informative rather than going straight in for the sell too!

Q&A: Microsoft Advertising’s Mel Carson on building communities

Super-chuffed to have been asked by Jake Hird at Econsultancy to contribute an interview to their blog. I’ve known him for a while now and am always impressed with his industry knowledge, and the way he spreads such great and useful insight on Twitter etc…

Just happened this way, but an interview with Bas at State of Search went live about the same time – A summer interview with… Mel Carson (@melcarson): “Discoverability + Shareability”

Last week, I did a radio show with him and Roy in which we talked about a whole load of digital delights.

Others:

Media Week

Bread Demographics

Microsoft Advertising Blog 

Get Great Digital Ideas from our US and EMEA Creative Showcase

Test Your Digital Quotient in our Asia Advertising Competition

New Digital Research: Consumer Multi-Screen Study from Microsoft and Wunderman

TED Talks @ Cannes – Two Online Now

Video: The Future of Advertising is Here – Kostas Mallios – Digital Showcase NYC

Microsoft adCenter Blog

Celebrity Video from Dougray Scott’s Leuka Charity Golf Day Sponsored by Bing

Microsoft Starts Testing on Yahoo! in Mid-July

Yahoo! and Microsoft Search Alliance News: Editorial Guideline Updates (US and Canada)

New Video from the Yahoo! and Microsoft Search Alliance: what does it mean for you?

Enjoy!

Just seen M-J – she’s only 24!!! – on BBC News this morning so thought I’d share this hilarious spoof dedicated to the Welsh town of Newport.

Don’t worry if you’re from the other side of the pond………there are subtitles!

Last week, I was asked to go and “do a bit of social media” at Dougray Scott’s Mini Masters golf tournament in aid of the charity Leuka, that the Bing UK were sponsoring.

I had no idea what to expect having never been to an event like it, but took my Kodak Zi8 and a microphone in the hope of catching someone to talk to.

Gianlucca Vialli played with our Bing team

Well as it turned out, we had a huge Bing bus right in the middle of Dukes Meadows Golf Course and a host of celebs became easy pickings for “a few words for the sponsors.”

Dougray Scott with a motley crew from Microsoft

In the video I talk to Hugh Grant, James Nesbitt, Tim Henman, Damian Lewis, Tim Lovejoy, Phil Glenister, Mark Nicholas, Rob Brydon and Gianluca Vialli.

Hugh are you?

Nearly all of them were very accommodating and gave us and the fabulous guys at Cherry UK some great material to edit. I say nearly all, because one gave me a bit of a runaround which, if you see me out and about I’d be happy to share, but not here!

Jimmy Nesbitt know how to party!

I needed a hook. Something about Bing to ask them and get a variety of responses.

So I came up with:

“What’s the best decision you’ve ever made?”

Geddit? Bing’s our “Decision Engine”……..anyway we got some great answers, so watch on!

Tim shared he’s not played tennis for 16 months!

James Walsh from Starsailor – he and his tour manager were delightful!

Already talk of us doing it all again next year……….so I’m off to the driving range!

Nice, concise and visual from Nick Stringer and the guys at the IABUK

I wrote a piece for Media Week on BT last year.

As more and more main stream press start talking about privacy and the issues around it, I’m finding it easier for non-industry friends and family to accept behavioural targeting as a valid way to reach them and keep the services they love and care about FREE!!

Tell people Microsoft, Google and Yahoo! are about to start charging for search, video and email and there’d be a riot…….