From seasonal bursts to always-on: Why education brands are doubling down on digital

Education advertisers are accelerating their pivot to digital, marking a decisive shift in how institutions approach student acquisition and media planning.

Industry observers note that education marketing is increasingly aligned with intent-led behaviour. With students and parents beginning their discovery journeys online, institutions are leaning more heavily on measurable digital formats to capture high-intent searches, nurture leads and optimise conversion funnels. The shift reflects growing confidence in digital’s ability to deliver trackable outcomes, particularly in a sector where return on investment is closely scrutinised.

This structural shift is now visible in spend patterns.

According to the dentsu-e4m Digital Advertising Report, digital ad spends in the education sector rose sharply from Rs 819 crore in 2024 to Rs 1,228 crore in 2025, reflecting close to 50% year-on-year growth. Digital’s share within the sector’s overall media mix also strengthened, rising from 25% in 2024 to 32% in 2025.

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The increase suggests that digital is moving beyond a supporting role to become a central planning layer in a category where admission cycles, competitive intensity and performance accountability shape media decisions.

The surge in investments also points to heightened competition across private universities, coaching institutes and edtech platforms, as brands compete for visibility during peak admission periods. As digital allocation deepens, the category appears to be transitioning from episodic campaign bursts to sustained, performance-driven engagement strategies.

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Burzeen Bhathena, Marketing Director at NMIMS University, echoed this view, describing the rise in digital spends as a structural reset in education marketing. He attributed it to four forces: Gen Z’s fully digital decision journey; government initiatives such as DigiLocker and Academic Bank of Credits accelerating digitisation; increased competition from foreign universities post-NEP 2020; and digital’s measurable ROI advantage over print and outdoor.

Prashant Deorah, Founder and CEO at Puretech Digital said, “The sharp acceleration in education digital spends is being driven by a structural shift towards performance-led student acquisition. Over the past year, education marketers have come under increasing pressure to demonstrate measurable outcomes such as cost per lead and cost per enrolment, especially as competition has intensified across universities, edtech platforms, online degree providers and study-abroad programs.”

He noted that the student decision journey is now largely digital, pushing brands from seasonal bursts to always-on acquisition. Digital, he added, has become the primary engine for admissions.

According to Deorah, the rise in digital spends stems from both budget reallocation and incremental marketing outlays, as institutions reduce reliance on print and regional TV while expanding online programmes, geographies and always-on lead generation.

Institutions investing in integrated digital ecosystems, Bhathena said, are seeing sharper efficiency, signalling that education marketing has evolved from communication to core infrastructure.

“While search and social media continue to get a significant percentage of the overall budget,  the affiliate platforms like education and test preparatory portals have also started to play a  key role in the student acquisition journey,” Bhathena added. 

Rise in digital budgets 

At the institutional level, rising costs and platform complexity are further shaping strategies.

SP Jain said its digital budgets rose significantly between 2024 and 2025 due to higher CPL and CPV, intensified competition and shifting platform dynamics. Regulatory changes around WhatsApp and the rise of AI-led search further increased nurturing and bidding costs. The additional spend, it noted, was aimed at maintaining lead quality and conversion efficiency in a more complex ecosystem.

Ramessh Misshra, Deputy Director–Marketing at SPJIMR, said intensified competition from traditional institutions, edtech platforms and global certifications now requires sustained digital visibility. With aspirants researching extensively across search, social media, video and peer reviews, consistent presence across touchpoints has become critical.

He noted, “At SPJIMR, we view digital not just as advertising, but as a strategic engagement engine, one that builds brand credibility, drives quality applications, and strengthens long-term institutional equity.”

Prof. Ram Kumar Kakani, Vice Chancellor, RV University said, “The fast-moving digital space that is so widely used by young students and their parents is the most compelling reason to hike investments in digital ad spends. The migration is justified by the faster reach and simpler communication medium.” He added that recent studies highlight the efficiency and directness of this shift, strengthened by AI-enabled search. With India’s higher education market projected to reach $30 billion by 2030, early and sustained digital investment is increasingly seen as critical to long-term competitiveness.

While most institutions are scaling spends, some are recalibrating their mix.

Pranav Padode, CEO and Whole-time Director of DSJ Keep Learning, said the company spent less this admissions season yet achieved record applications, signalling a shift from heavy paid performance to a more brand-led mix. While Meta and Google remain key platforms, he noted rising CACs on Search, with Meta gaining momentum.

To sustain efficiency, the company has strengthened its proprietary AI-led insights platform for sales monitoring and lead scoring, improving conversions and narrowing the sales-marketing gap.

“More recently, we’ve started experimenting with content-marketing-first acquisition and programmatic channels and both look promising. The trade-off is simple: stronger outcomes, but higher content quality expectations and the costs that come with it,” Padode highlighted. 

Digital formats

The format mix further illustrates how the digital pivot is playing out.

According to Deorah, the dominance of paid search underscores the intent-driven nature of education marketing. As a high-consideration category, users actively search for courses, fees, eligibility and timelines, placing them deep in the decision funnel and making search highly efficient for lead quality and predictable conversions.

He explained, “while upper-funnel channels such as YouTube, social and content partnerships continue to play an important role in building awareness and nurturing consideration, a large portion of budgets is anchored around capturing existing demand through search and remarketing, reflecting a strong performance and outcome orientation.”

At DSJ Keep Learning, search remains dominant, though a stronger overall digital presence drove a 300% rise in applications in the final admissions phase. The institute emphasised that high-quality leads are those aligned with its class profile, distinct from high-value leads shaped by institutional legacy and outcomes.

At RV University, visual and social content including “day in the life” vlogs and student-generated posts are helping bridge aspiration and authenticity for prospective students.

“Along with ad campaigns on google, YouTube and meta, WhatsApp and chatbot led instant conversations have also shown to solve queries efficiently without students having to leave their preferred apps. This enables a relatively lower per-admission cost while hiking the probability of successful admission completion with efficient problem solving,” said Kakani. 

Misshra said paid search and video/social play complementary roles. Search captures high-intent candidates and drives stronger conversions, while video and social shape aspiration and early-stage consideration through faculty insights, alumni stories and campus narratives.

“In simple terms, search captures demand; video and social create and nurture it. At SPJIMR, we optimise the mix carefully, leveraging search for performance efficiency while investing meaningfully in content-led platforms to strengthen brand equity and ensure a sustained pipeline of high-quality applicants,” Misshra added.

NMIMS similarly said search remains the strongest driver of lower-funnel conversions. However, with digitally native students expecting seamless experiences, video and social are critical for building trust and consideration. Short-form content, campus tours and alumni stories shape perception and drive registrations by allowing students to experience the institution before applying.

“In my experience, the highest-quality leads come from an integrated approach that includes Search to capture intent, Video to build aspiration, Social media to nurture engagement, backed by a robust CRM for continuous engagement across personal touchpoints like email and WhatsApp,” Bhathena concluded. “A unified digital journey will always deliver a stronger lead-to-registration-to-admission ratio.”