"Hackathons," the intense, focused, idea-spawning sessions that originated in the programming community, are valued for their ability to inspire creativity, critical thinking, and innovation--all skills that employers say are essential but often lacking in business graduates. This paper introduces the "Markathon," a team-based project that incorporates features of a hackathon to provide an opportunity for students to put to use marketing concepts learned during the semester, as well as practice other essential business skills. Working in an environment that embodies the spontaneity and time constraints inherent in hackathons, student teams are challenged to develop a product or service that will improve or promote the university. Assessment of this project by students in three sections of introductory marketing classes indicates that the project teaches students important marketing concepts and valuable business skills, while also contributing to students' engagement in the course.