Setup Happy Hour - Connecting + Celebrating in 2024

A peek into last year’s Happy Hour!

In support of our vision to connect marketers with the best people and resources, we’ve hosted a Happy Hour for the Atlanta marketing community at our office for the last two years. Partners, community members, and Clients all join together to laugh, chat, and learn more about one another.

At these Happy Hours we provide a “Networking Bingo” sheet to help people start conversations and guide them through networking. It’s amazing when a conversation with one person gets interrupted with the gift of someone asking, “Is anyone from Iowa?” The smallest question can open the floodgates to a number of questions, and eventually connections on LinkedIn (true story).

Check out the network bingo worksheet to use at your own events!

And if you attended our Happy Hour, check out the photos and recap video below. We are so thankful for your presence in our community and hope that we can continue to support you throughout your marketing journey!

Blog

CMO Spotlight | Gabie Boko - NetApp

Setup CEO + Founder, Joe Koufman, sat down with Gabie Boko, the Chief Marketing Officer for NetApp, to talk about staying consumer focused, being bold, and loving the LEGO brand.

Super Bowl LX Ads: Storytelling, Human Connection + Strategic Risks

Super Bowl LX showcased brands pushing weight loss drugs, AI, and utilizing celebrities to an absurd amount (what’s new?), as well as another “Minions" movie in theaters (surprised but not shocked). Every marketer weighs in on who won their hearts…and this year, for us, it came down to brands that leaned into storytelling that included nostalgia and emotion, specifically with a human lens.

The Real Reason Brands Break Up With Agencies (It’s Not Budget)

And if you’ve ever been blindsided by a brand-agency breakup (from either side), you’re not alone. The 2025 Marketing Relationship Survey shows something that’s both surprising and painfully familiar:

Brands aren’t racing to leave… but they’re also not thrilled.

CMO Spotlight | Don McGuire - Qualcomm

Setup CEO + Founder, Joe Koufman, sat down with Don McGuire, the EVP and Chief Marketing Officer for Qualcomm, to talk about seizing the moment of opportunity, empathetic leadership, Louis Vuitton, and more.

The 2025 Marketing Relationship Survey Results: The Relationship Gap Is a Delivery Gap

The annual Setup Marketing Relationship Survey reveals a growing disconnect between what clients say ends agency relationships (delivery + value) and what agencies think ends them (budget cuts + leadership changes). If you want stronger partnerships and better outcomes in 2026, this report highlights exactly where relationships break and how to fix them.

CMO Spotlight | Brett Hannath - Intel

Setup CEO + Founder, Joe Koufman, sat down with Brett Hannath, the Corporate VP, Global Marketing of Intel, to talk problem solving, transparent leadership, the bricks-and-mortar experience, and more.

Why I Wrote The Connector’s Compass - and Who It’s For

Joe Koufman, author of The Connector’s Compass and Founder + CEO of Setup, shares his passion behind relationship building and why he wrote a book centered around people pursuing more meaningful connections.

2025 Marketing Trends + Priorities for 2026 Across Industries

Over the past year, we’ve watched the following patterns emerge across seemingly unrelated sectors: rising consumer expectations, demand for authenticity, growing complexity, and the tension between automation and human connection.

We interviewed multiple marketers from an array of industries in our blogs below, and we discovered consistent trends across the board. Check out all of our industry blogs throughout 2025 from leaders at Blackbaud, Hiscox USA, Mimedx, MONPURE, Kimberly-Clark Professional, and more.

Now Is the Moment: A Call to Shape the Future of Agency–Brand Partnerships

A call for marketers and agencies to participate in the 2025 Marketing Relationship Survey, before it’s too late.

AIMS 2025: The Event for Atlanta’s Marketing Community

On November 19, 2025, Atlanta’s vibrant marketing community united under one roof for the first-ever Atlanta Integrated Marketing Summit (AIMS) — a remarkable experience that turned inspiration into action, focused on meaningful connections, and highlighted incredible leaders from UPS, Kellanova, Edible Brands, and Papa Johns who are actively pushing the industry forward.

Denim Wars: How American Eagle + Gap Battled for Dominance in Fall 2025

Explore the denim duel between AE’s Sydney Sweeney campaign and Gap’s Milkshake-fueled comeback—and what marketers can learn.

Don’t Wait for the Fire Drill: Building Agency Relationships Before You Need Them

Most agency searches begin with urgency: a priority shift, a launch date appears, and suddenly, you’re writing an RFP at midnight. In that scramble, you invite too many firms, ask the wrong questions, and end up choosing based on pitch theater instead of day-to-day fit. The fix isn’t a better RFP template. It’s time - specifically, the time you spend getting to know agencies before you need one.

Why Atlanta Needs AIMS (and Why Now)

Joe Koufman, the Founder and CEO of Setup, explains the benefit of reviving the Atlanta Integrated Marketing System (AIMS). Bringing AIMS back to Atlanta is a chance to unite our community, foster new connections, and share practical insights from across the spectrum. Read about how AIMS benefits the Atlanta marketing community:

Best Data-Driven Media Strategy Practices

“Data-driven” marketing is about proactively leveraging insights to make strategic decisions. But what defines a truly data-driven media approach?

How Top Brands Are Fixing Media Complexity on Multiple Platforms

If your media strategy feels tangled and unclear, you’re not alone. Here’s how smart brands are simplifying the chaos and getting real results.

CMO Spotlight | Ron McMurtrie - Honeywell

Setup CEO + Founder, Joe Koufman, sat down with Ron McMurtrie, the CMO of Honeywell, to talk about purpose-driven leadership, having a team-focused mentality, starting with why, and more.

Media Strategies That Drive Results: How Marketing Leaders Measure + Maximize ROI

Whether you’re managing campaigns for a national brand, a franchise QSR, or a B2B tech company, the challenge is the same: how do you build smarter media strategies that actually tie back to real business outcomes? We spoke with top experts from Sagepath, Goodway Group, and Look Listen to dig into what’s working, what’s changing, and where media performance and analytics are headed next.

Leveraging AI to Fuel Human Creativity – August 2025 #MarketersBreakfast Recap

On a bright August morning in Atlanta, marketers from across the city from brands like Hiscox, Coca-Cola, Church’s Chicken, and more gathered for Setup’s latest #MarketersBreakfast, ready to explore a topic on everyone’s mind: How can AI truly enhance, rather than replace, human creativity?

Over coffee and conversation, attendees rolled up their sleeves for a hands-on, interactive session led by Aby Varma, the Founder of Spark Novus.

A Strategic Guide to Building Modern Media Plans That Perform

Media is about delivering results that are meaningful. Your strategy should be about more than impressions. But with siloed data and rising expectations, it's hard to prioritize meaning under pressure to perform.

That’s why we’ve brought together three powerful blogs filled with insights from industry experts at the top of their media game to help you rethink your media planning, simplify execution, and activate smarter strategies that drive growth.

What “Data-Driven” Media Strategy Really Means Today

“Data-driven” marketing is about proactively leveraging insights to make strategic decisions. But what defines a truly data-driven media approach?

How Smart Marketers Build a Budget That Actually Works

Creating a marketing budget isn’t just a financial exercise; it’s a strategic act. It’s your roadmap for growth, your guardrail against wasted effort, and, when done well, your strongest case for internal alignment and external results.

But while most marketers know how much they wish they could spend, far fewer know how much they should. So, where do you begin?

How Marketers Can Simplify Media Complexity + Double Results

Marketers today juggle numerous platforms, overwhelming data, and competing internal demands, creating a complex media landscape that clouds performance clarity. What drives this complexity, and how can brands effectively navigate it?

Smarter Media, Better Results: How Marketers Are Rethinking Media ROI

Today’s marketers face immense pressure to justify media spend and measure tangible impact. But fragmented data, inadequate tracking, and unclear KPIs often cloud visibility. How can brands build smarter strategies that truly connect media spend to real business outcomes?

The Top 5 Questions Marketers are Asking in 2025 + How to Find the Answers

At Setup, we don’t just listen, we track patterns, analyze them, and come up with solutions to assist marketers with their challenges. Every year, our Marketing Relationship Survey gathers insights from brand and agency marketers to identify the core challenges, shifts, and opportunities in the client–agency relationship. These aren’t hypotheticals; they’re real-time questions marketing leaders are actively asking. And your answers help drive the industry's evolution.

CMO Spotlight | Navin Sharma - Church's Texas Chicken

Setup CEO + Founder, Joe Koufman, sat down with Navin Sharma, Chief Marketing Officer at Church’s Texas Chicken, to talk about the importance of hard work, resilience, and why simply getting started is often the most imperative step to success.

The Agency Capability Showcase Recap - 10 Groundbreaking Case Studies in 90 Minutes

At Setup, we work with some of the finest marketing agencies across the nation–each with a unique set of capabilities. Our most recent virtual event gave our partners a platform to share an exclusive behind-the-scenes look into their process, strategy, and campaign results for an array of industries in under two hours. Ten case studies in 90 minutes and a little friendly competition.

CMO Spotlight | Joshua Sims Sr. - Noble Food and Pursuits

Setup CEO + Founder, Joe Koufman, spoke with Joshua Sims Sr., the Chief Marketing Officer at Noble Food and Pursuits about how he prioritizes relationships and embodies the humanization of marketing.

The Rise of AI in 2025: Leveraging your Tech Stack While Preserving Human Connection

Is AI stripping consumers of excitement? Is there unconscious bias in AI? How can marketers stand out while using the same tech stack?

In conversations with marketing leaders in the high-tech and innovation sector, adopting AI is not the challenge. The future belongs to teams who adapt to AI while investing in human elements like curiosity, connection, and inspiration.

A New Era for Innovation | Navigating the High-Tech Landscape

Advancements in AI over the last few years have shifted customer expectations. With all of this power and access, however, comes more responsibility on marketers to lead with intention and care. Explore the biggest shifts in High-tech + Innovation and how marketing leaders can act accordingly.

Why Chemistry Matters When Choosing a Marketing Agency

When it comes to picking an agency, chemistry between brands and agencies is often overlooked in the selection process, but it’s one of the biggest indicators of long-term success. Yes, you need a business partner with the right capabilities and experience, but when it comes down to the final candidates, chemistry is what truly sets long-term partners apart.

Setup News/EventsSetup - marketing matchmakersNovember 19, 2024Happy HourComment