Recently, Business Week had a brief article titled, “Now Social Networking Fridays” that described one company’s attempt at using social networking tools to improve recruiting, networking and even employee morale. The company in question, Serena Software, has launched “Facebook Fridays” where employees are asked to spend one hour each Friday to “update their profiles, collaborate with colleagues and clients, and recruit for Serena.”

The goal of Facebook Fridays, according to SVP Rene Bonvanie, is to “get people to communicate and collaborate more.” On the whole, this doesn’t seem like a bad idea, especially if your community and customers are mostly online.

However, for a guy like me that already spends 50+ hours on the computer each week, I’d like to suggest some balance to the idea of spending an hour on a social networking site.

Assuming there is true business value derived from this activity (and it’s a big assumption that employees aren’t just goofing off) I’d like to propose some alternate ideas for Facebook Fridays:

* Improve your public speaking, communication and leadership skills by joining a weekly Toastmasters meeting.
* Spend the hour each week networking at a local Rotary, Lions or other similar club
* Volunteer for a non-profit in a leadership capacity, or just volunteer. There’s great opportunities to network and build bridges with community leaders and in most cases, you can get away with volunteering an hour a week.
* Join a local professional’s organization or special interest group in your industry or discipline. An example might be the Bay Area’s Wireless Users Group.
* Join a local American Marketing Association chapter for the networking and learning opportunities
* Spend the hour on a new research topic, experiment, or “just thinking”– similar to a policy Google has in place
* Worse case scenario, go low tech. Pick up one of those archaic things, I think they’re called a telephone, call a customer and inquire about his or her kids, golf game, hobbies or anything of substance.

Please note, I’m not a technology Luddite (I’ve been in the information technology field for 15 years), nor am I anti Web 2.0.

I do believe, however, that when it comes to networking, recruiting, and connecting–especially building first-time relationships, there’s no substitute for in-person or at the very least–telephone meetings.

* Are “FaceBook Fridays,” as conceived by Serena Software, frivolous?
* If you worked at Serena Software, what alternative suggestions (if any) might you offer to CEO Jeremy Burton?

As marketing professionals, there is an expectation that we have the very best communication skills. And with enough preparation and advanced notice, most of us can deliver a terrific presentation. However, there are many times when the unforeseeable happens and we are called to deliver an impromptu presentation. Is there a way to “prepare” for an impromptu speech?

A “prepared impromptu” might sound like an oxymoron until we realize that most impromptu speeches will be based on topics we either know well, or have at least a mild familiarity. Back in Speech 101, it was probably a requirement to pull a few subjects from a hat and give a 2-3 minute talk on a random topic. While a good exercise for learning “off-the-cuff” speaking, in the corporate world I have yet to see a CEO pull topics from a hat and require employees to demonstrate their public speaking prowess.

Realizing that most impromptu speeches will cover topics we know well, let’s get back to the scenario above. While you may not be wholly prepared for the morning customer briefing, there are some steps you can take to be ready for your next impromptu talk.

Step #1: Practice impromptu speaking. At first glance it might not seem possible to practice impromptu speaking, but there are resources available to assist you in speaking extemporaneously.

Joining your local Toastmasters, for example, can give you practice in speaking off-the-cuff. All Toastmasters groups are required to host a 15-20 minute “Table Topics” session as part of a general meeting. In Table Topics, members are given a random question by a moderator and asked to talk for 45 seconds or more about the assigned topic. Members are encouraged to treat each table topic as a mini-speech and try to include an introduction, body and conclusion.

As a Toastmaster, I highly recommend the organization. However, if you don’t want to join a speaking club you can always practice impromptu speaking with your peers. Practicing your impromptu speaking on a weekly basis can help prepare you to think and speak on your feet. At first, your impromptu speaking will probably not be very coherent. However, with practice, you will notice a remarkable difference in your ability to improvise.

Step #2: Practice speaking on familiar subjects. I have found that many times I understand a particular subject and in my mind I know it well, however actually presenting that subject to an audience is a different animal. It can be frustrating to have a firm grasp of a topic but then have trouble articulating and summarizing the topic in an intelligible manner.

For example, you might be a product manager and work with a product everyday, but unless you’ve actually completed a live demonstration for a customer regarding how the product really works, you could find yourself looking foolish. A practice run, or two, for a group of peers (pretending to be customers) will help remove some of the rough patches in a future presentation.

So put down your coffee, grab your laptop and don’t fret. By following these steps to better impromptu speaking, you’ll have practiced speaking on your feet and practiced the material you’ll most likely present. Few marketers like to speak spontaneously, but at least you can be prepared for your next impromptu speech.

Fellow marketers, are you prepared for your next impromptu talk?

What techniques do you use to prepare for ad-hoc speeches or customer discussions? Any lessons learned or tidbits of wisdom that you’d like to share?

Even though most Americans fear rattlesnakes and death more than public speaking, you would think marketing professionals would be immune to the shakes, sweats and inopportune stomach-gurgling that accompanies public speaking. After all, we’re supposed to be the gregarious, flamboyant, and creative types right? Shouldn’t we be able to get up and “take over” a room with a brilliant presentation?

About a year ago, 15 of my fellow marketing professionals at a global consulting firm and I were invited to a communications workshop at corporate headquarters.

Most of us assumed we’d be learning about gender differences in communication, complete a few personality tests, and then fly back to our home offices. However, we were all surprised (and some horrified), to discover this “communication workshop,” was actually a 1.5-day course on public speaking and presentation skills.

We were instructed for four hours on effective speaking and communication skills, and then asked to present twice over the two days, in front of our peers and gulp– a video camera.

Round one wasn’t pretty. A few of my colleagues turned beet-red, scratched their necks into a rosy hue, stuck their hands in their pockets, and lost track of their notes through the ad-hoc presentations we were instructed to give. One friend of mine insisted on sitting on a chair in the front of the room, instead of standing, because he said that’s how he gives most of his presentations. Needless to say, that approach was awkward.

The next day, round two was better, presumably since we all had a night of dinner and drinking to recover from round one.

In the beginning of the session, I was convinced that I would likely be one of the worst presenters. I was in a room of high-powered marketing professionals, at a global consulting giant, where some people had graduate degrees from the finest universities in the nation. Surely everyone would be polished and outstanding speakers.

At the end of the session, I was amazed how few marketers could stand up, with very little notice and deliver an effective “impromptu” presentation without having a complete meltdown–something akin to what I sometimes see from my five-year-old.

Now you say, 15 marketing people is entirely too small of a sample size to postulate that most marketers are terrible public speakers. I wish I could say otherwise, but observations through my marketing career have proven time and again that good public speaking skills are not a given for marketing professionals.

Like most skills in life, practice makes perfect. If your public speaking skills are rusty, chances are that your next impromptu corporate presentation will be rusty. If your last presentation was two years ago, your next presentation (no matter how much you practice in front of the mirror) will be rusty. If you are a terrible public speaker, and know it, then why not do something about it?

There are more than a few avenues to improve your public speaking skills. Many community colleges offer weekend public speaking workshops, or the ability to enroll in Speech 101, 201 or similar course for an entire semester of critical instructor and peer feedback.

There are also public speaking groups like Toastmasters or other social networking groups where a marketer can practice different types of presentations and get critical feedback on a speech including content, flow, body language, hand gestures, and overall effectiveness of the message

Presenting an aire of confidence, and delivering the best presentation you possibly can, is quite honestly the expectation of our customers, suppliers and CEO’s. Whether you are an entrepreneur or a corporate marketer, better public speaking is a skill that can take you places you’ve never dreamed of professionally.

The next time that “impromptu speech” to a customer, Vice President or CEO, comes up (and it will), with practice you’ll be ready to knock it out of the park.

So fellow marketers, go forth, speak, and do the rest of us proud.