Microsoft's Ben Rudolph had his "smart thinking" hat on this week as RIM's issues with Blackberry gathered a lot of press. Taking to Twitter he offered 25 Windows Phone handsets to "frustrated smartphone users" who hoped to find something simpler in Windows Phone. 1500 responses later, as the lucky winners are announced, Rudolph has decided it's going to run every month for the foreseeable future.

So here’s what I’ll be doing from now on; send your story about why you want (or need) a Windows Phone to my Ben the PC Guy email address. Do you need it for work, and can’t live without our built-in Office features? Are you a social butterfly and love the fact that Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn are baked right in? Do you drool over the beauty of live tiles? Whatever the reason is, I want to hear about it. Every month, I’ll select a story that I think is unique and compelling and I’ll get that person a Windows Phone. A few weeks later, I’ll catch up with the winner and post a blog on how their new Windows Phone has changed their life.

What do I like about this story? That it shows a proactive Microsoft both in making a marketing decision, but staying hooked into the social networks. PR is going to be one of the key factors for Windows Phone growth over the coming months and years, so let's hope we see more of this.