327 student leads in a 60-day intake window, with 320 of them for European universities

A study-abroad consultancy in Ernakulam wanted students from Ernakulam and Kochi who were aiming for universities in Europe and the UK, and it had a 60-day intake window to find them. We split its Meta lead-form campaigns by destination, watched which one the students chose, and moved the budget towards it.

Between 1 May and 30 June 2026, the consultancy received 327 student leads at an average of ₹198.98 each, on a total ad spend of ₹65,066.02. Of those leads, 320 came from the European campaign, at ₹190.33 each.

At a glance

The client

Our client is a study-abroad and overseas education consultancy in Ernakulam. For this campaign it had a single goal: find students in Ernakulam and Kochi hoping to study at a European or UK university.

A consultancy stays with each student for a long time, from picking a course all the way to arriving on campus. Along the way there are choices about the country, the course and the university, then applications and the paperwork that follows. Families usually take part, because studying abroad is a large decision for a household.

That long journey changes how a consultancy should think about leads. Every serious lead is valuable, because it can become a student the consultancy guides from start to finish. Every idle lead is costly, because a counsellor still has to spend time on it, time that could have gone to someone ready to move.

The challenge

The work covered a 60-day intake window, running from 1 May to 30 June 2026. Universities take students on set dates. Someone who gets in touch too late normally misses that intake and has to wait for the following one, and may sign up with a rival in the meantime. The consultancy therefore needed serious, ready-to-act leads within the window, not after it closed.

Destination was the second difficulty. Someone keen on the UK wants to know different things from someone considering Europe, whether about cost, language or the choice of courses. Put both in a single campaign and the money is spread across a blend of the two, and there is no way to tell which market is actually responding.

This is where the usual approach in study-abroad marketing falls short. A single "study abroad" campaign looks tidy, but it hides the one thing a consultancy most needs to know during a short window: where the demand really is.

What we did

One campaign for each destination

We set up two Meta lead-form campaigns, a Europe campaign and a UK campaign. Each spoke to one kind of student, with a message about that destination. Just as important, each reported its own results. Within the window it became clear which destination was drawing interest, instead of that answer being lost inside one combined figure.

Enquiries without leaving the app

Both campaigns used Meta lead forms. Students could get in touch with just a few taps, without leaving the app to load a website and fill in a longer form. For someone scrolling on a phone, every extra step is a chance to drop out, so a short route from interest to enquiry helps keep the numbers up.

Moving the budget to where the volume was

Europe turned out to be the far bigger draw. Once that was clear, we moved budget towards them. This is the step that turns a split campaign from a reporting exercise into a real gain: the money went to the destination students were choosing, while the window was still open. The European campaign went on to bring in 320 leads at ₹190.33 each.

We used the same idea, letting the numbers decide where the money goes, for an IT training institute in Ernakulam that tested creatives course by course.

The results

Read together, these figures tell a simple story. Over a single intake window, 327 people got in touch about studying overseas. Of these, 320 arrived through the Europe campaign, which is where we had shifted the budget. Its leads were also cheaper than the account average, at ₹190.33 compared with ₹198.98.

The reach was deliberately modest. The campaigns reached 24,887 accounts and made 70,441 impressions, because they were aimed at students in Ernakulam and Kochi, not at the whole country.

Why it worked

Splitting by destination gave a clear answer. Instead of one muddy number, the consultancy had a clear result for each destination. Before the window closed, it was obvious which market students preferred, something a combined campaign would never reveal.

The money went where the students were. Splitting the budget evenly would have meant paying to promote the destination with less demand. As it was, nearly every lead came from the cheaper campaign.

Reach stayed local. By staying with the Ernakulam and Kochi student population, the campaigns built a smaller, closer audience. For a local consultancy, nearby students are easier to meet, advise and turn into applications.

The students pick the country; the budget should go where they point.

How to apply this to your business

• Give each destination, course or package its own campaign, so each one reports its own results.
• Decide your intake window in advance and judge the campaigns inside it, not after it closes.
• Check results early in the window and move budget to the option the market is choosing.
• Keep your audience to the area your team can actually serve and meet.
• Use a short enquiry route, such as an in-app lead form, so interested students do not drop out.
• Make sure counsellors follow up quickly, because a study-abroad lead goes cold as the intake date gets closer.

Questions business owners ask

How do study-abroad consultancies get student leads from Meta ads?

One approach that worked here was running Meta lead-form campaigns aimed at students in the consultancy's own area. Over 60 days, that brought in 327 student leads. Another study-abroad consultancy is worth a look if you are planning a similar campaign.

Should I run separate ad campaigns for each country?

If students ask different questions about each destination, yes. Here a separate campaign for Europe and the UK showed within the window that Europe was drawing far more students, and the budget moved to match.

What does a study-abroad lead cost?

It depends on the market, the destination and the season. In this case the average was ₹198.98 per lead, and the European campaign came in lower at ₹190.33.

When should a consultancy advertise for an intake?

Inside the window when students are deciding, and early enough to act on what the numbers show. This campaign ran from 1 May to 30 June 2026, which left time to move the budget while it still made a difference.

Recruiting students for a study-abroad intake? Book a 20-minute call.