What to include in a Higher Education Institution influencer campaign

By Rhiannon Stone

Next year’s international students are turning to social media to help them decide which higher ed course to pick. Do you know what they’re looking for and who they are asking?

Influencer marketing campaigns and strong student advocacy are key to attracting international students in 2025 and beyond. The right influencers can increase your online presence and connect with your target markets in a way that traditional marketing methods simply cannot.

We’ll dive into to the details and cover what you need to include in your higher education influencer marketing campaign. We’ll also explore current online trends and show you what other schools and higher education institutes are putting out there.

Where to find international education influencers

Authenticity is a big deal when it comes to higher education institution influencer campaigns. A full 47% of people say they want influencers to give their honest take about a product, even if it’s sponsored content.

Whoever you work with should have an authentic connection to your university or college. Partnering with random influencers is a hard no: Your campaign could do more damage than good.

Here are the options this leaves you with:

1. International student endorsements

Nobody can give your school a more genuine endorsement than your current international students. International student advocates can talk about what’s on offer, give recommendations and talk about how to handle the transition abroad. As they’re sharing their first-hand experiences, it will feel more like friendly advice instead of a sales pitch.

They might not have a huge following, or even be classed as influencers, but their words hold real weight. There should be plenty of candidates among your current international students. Over half of Gen Z say they’d jump at the opportunity to become a paid influencer.

Top tip: Aim to build a diverse cohort of student advocates and influencers who can speak to your different target markets.

2. Faculty and a wider network

Chances are some of your staff have a strong online presence. Research shows one in ten people from all age groups consider themselves to be influencers. Like your students, educators can offer an insider’s perspective on what it’s like at your university or college. They can answer everyone’s most burning questions or give them a behind-the-scenes look.

Faculty influencers can get a lot of traction. Professor André Isaacs (a.k.a “STEM fatale”) has over 500K followers on TikTok where he posts offbeat content about his chemistry lessons. The top comments on one of his pinned videos are users from all over the world literally begging for more.

3. Alumni

Former international students can also speak from personal experience. They have an advantage over current students and faculty in that they may seem less biased to an outsider.

Even better, successful alumni can be walking-proof that your courses help international students achieve their goals.

Which social media platforms to use

Having the right influencers is important. But it’s all a little academic, if nobody sees your content. You need to make sure you’re using the right platforms to connect with your target audiences. Here are the social media platforms that Gen Z are most likely to visit: 

Overall most popular platforms	India‘s largest platforms	China‘s largest platforms	Nigeria‘s largest platforms
1. YouTube 2. TikTok* 3. Snapchat 4. Instagram 5. Twitter 6- Facebook	1. Facebook 2. Instagram 3. YouTube 4. X 5. Pinterest	1. WeChat 2. Douyin 3. QQ 4. Baidu Tieba 5. Xiaohongshu (RedNote)	1. Facebook 2. Instagram 3. TikTok 4. X 5. Snapchat

Preferences can vary drastically between countries. For example, TikTok might be the most beloved app in Czechia and Slovakia, but just over the border in Poland, people prefer Yubo.

Also, check which countries have banned certain apps. Some governments still won’t sanction the use of Meta products, including Facebook and Instagram. Also, many countries including India and Vietnam have either banned or restricted the use of TikTok…and we all know about the US debacle.

There’s no use launching a large-scale campaign on a platform if your key demographic can’t even see it.

*Note the current (Jan 2025) brouhaha surrounding a possible US TikTok ban means it might be better not to have big plans for this platform until things are resolved.

Where to post content

You now have a choice: post on university channels, or the influencer’s.

• Posting on your channel, on the other hand, gives you more control over the message and branding. You can instantly pull the plug if there’s an issue and you get direct access to marketing data.
• Influencers can give your posts extra authenticity. After all, they’re sharing the posts on their channels and giving their views. It feels more like a personal recommendation than a paid promo.

There’s also option C:

• Posting on both channels lets you maximise your reach while demonstrating your institute has close ties with the influencer. You can add to the impact by tagging each other or interacting with the posts.

UCLA has posted Eden’s video on its own account, she has then commented and generated extra engagement.

What to think about when starting out

We’ve discussed all the concrete elements of a successful HEI influencer campaign for international students. Now, let’s examine what you need to include in your strategy.

Influencer and brand alignment

You can’t just get any old influencer to promote your institute. If there’s a mismatch in brand values, you won’t reach the right audience or send the intended message.

The first step is to see which candidates share your goals and values. You’ll probably be looking for someone like international student, Faye Ng, who discusses her degree studies in Australia.

However, influencers don’t have to stick to academics. They might talk about the university lifestyle, the surrounding town, the country, or local events.

The next step is to check that influencers cater to the right demographic. Their followers should be in the right age group in a country where your institute often garners a lot of interest.

Metrics

Understanding influencers’ metrics can help you see whether they’d be a good fit for your campaign. Here’s what you need to look at:

• Number of followers
• Engagement rate
• Impressions
• Click-through rate
• Conversion rate

When deciding between influencers, look beyond their follower count. Big names may instantly boost your visibility but they’re less likely to get comments, shares and likes. Whereas nano influencers are more likely to have a dedicated, loyal following in the locations you’re targeting. They have the time to interact with more people and drive engagement. For example, Ibz Mo has a decent 20K followers and people are very invested in his content.

Engagement is also the best way to measure the success of influencer campaigns. See how many students interact with your content over time. An increase in likes and comments suggests your new content resonates with your target audience.

The Higher Education Institution influencer campaign contract

A detailed contract helps to clarify your expectations and keep your Higher Education Institution influencer campaign on track. If things don’t work out, it can protect you from legal issues.

In plain language, aim to include:

• Basic details: It’s standard practice to include your information, their information and the date you draw up the contract.
• The campaign scope: You should state exactly what the influencer is required to do in concrete terms. For example, how many deliverables should they produce? What types? How often should they produce them?
• Regulatory requirements: Educational institutes must follow strict rules concerning data privacy and advertising standards. The influencer should not only understand these but also have them in writing to refer to.
• Compensation: As with a standard work contract, you should clearly state the rate and how you’ll handle any expenses.
• Confidentiality agreements: You can use the contract to explain what information the influencer can share and what should remain private.
• A killswitch clause: This lets you pause or end the contract if the influencer acts in ways that could harm your brand reputation.
• A termination clause: The contract should explain your rights and responsibilities if you wish to end the partnership early.

If your influencer is currently based abroad, check all the terms still apply in their country. Some jurisdictions may have laws which can override your agreement. Please consult legal when producing any kind of contract.

Pricing

There’s no set rate for influencers. The fees can range from $100 to over $6,000 per post according to Semrush. When deciding how to set a fair rate, consider the following factors:

• Audience size and engagement
• Geographic reach
• Years of experience
• The number of deliverables
• The type of content produced
• Who gets the usage rights
• Any additional services 

Have a limited marketing budget? If you use nano influencers, you can expect to pay somewhere between $25 and $1000 per post.

Many brands used to offer products or services in lieu of payment. Now we’ve seen the impact influencer marketing can have, this arrangement is less common. Surveys show most creators today expect direct compensation.

However, you could negotiate a deal with students. They might be willing to lower their rates for merchandise, discounted resources or exclusive access to your events. For example, university clubs and bars often host some of the most popular concerts of the year. 

Rules of engagement

Set clear rules and guidelines to set the influencer up for success. They should understand which topics and behaviour are appropriate and which are totally off-limits. 

That doesn’t mean censoring them. You may just want the influencer to avoid being overly promotional and speak about their own experience and opinions instead. Stating this upfront can help them create content that meets your hopes and expectations.

It’s also essential to remind influencers to be transparent with their followers. They should disclose their partnership somewhere on every post. 

The reverse is true. When you publish content on your channel, follow any rules the influencer has set. You also acknowledge them if you share any posts or videos like. A simple tag like the one in the Facebook post above will often do.

Why authentic content gets real results with every audience

There’s no need to compete with big brands when developing your higher education institution influencer campaign strategy. Some of the best campaigns are small-scale projects with nano influencers.

The key is to keep everything authentic. International students are curious about what to expect from your university or college and what kind of experience they’d have there. Nobody’s looking for escapism here — they really want to get to know your institute.

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