After evaluating over 200 agencies, we have curated a list of the top 10 higher education marketing firms, considering their key services, industry recognitions, client reviews, and pricing models. Read on to learn about these agencies’ areas of expertise and success stories and find a reliable partner for your marketing needs.

The Number 1 Higher Education Marketing Agency, as Selected by DesignRush, Is...

1. Carnegie

• Best for: Overall
• Average hourly rate: Inquire
• Minimum budget: Inquire
• Founded: 1985
• Size: 250-499
• Location: Westford, MA
• Notable clients: Gettysburg College, Curry College, University of Idaho, Luther College, Ithaca College

Carnegie empowers educational institutions with transformative marketing and enrollment strategies poised to attract and engage prospective students. Its expertise spans brand strategy, digital marketing, enrollment management, communications analysis, segmentation strategy, market intelligence, and marketing planning activities. The agency employs a unique psychometric methodology, combining proprietary data with profound psychological insights to create communications and strategies that build effective connections and prompt targeted responses.

Carnegie Success Story

• Challenge: Gettysburg College sought to enhance its marketing and enrollment strategies to better connect with prospective students and distinguish itself in a competitive market. It needed a solution to test and optimize its new strategic plan while expanding its digital reach.
• Solution: Carnegie conducted market research to compare Gettysburg’s position with its competitors and used the findings to launch a new messaging campaign. To broaden Gettysburg’s reach, the agency expanded the strategy with search engine optimization (SEO), pay-per-click (PPC), and social media and implemented Google Analytics 4 (GA4) for precise measurement.
• Results: Gettysburg College’s collaboration with Carnegie led to an 86% increase in new website visitors, with 69% of this traffic attributed to Carnegie's campaigns. Gettysburg also saw a 4% increase in year-over-year (YoY) inquiries, a 23% YoY rise in applications, and a 3% boost in YoY admissions.

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2. OHO Interactive

• Best for: Full-funnel digital marketing
• Average hourly rate: $199
• Minimum budget: $50,000 & Up
• Founded: 1998
• Size: 100-249
• Location: Somerville, MA
• Notable clients: Champlain College, Dartmouth College, USC Rossier School of Education, Dominican University of California, Columbia Law School

OHO Interactive is a higher education marketing agency that develops high-performing digital campaigns, visually striking websites, and CMS platforms that ensure ease of use. As a full-funnel digital marketing provider, the agency offers digital advertising, retargeting, conversion, personalization, website redesign, and campaign tracking, focusing on the customer journey. Enrollment marketing encompasses another notable offering by OHO Interactive, wherein the agency combines lead generation and paid digital ads to help academic institutions maximize their marketing investments and elevate institutional prestige.

OHO Interactive Success Story

• Challenge: Champlain College Online faced the dual challenge of increasing lead quality while concentrating on volume to identify the most qualified prospects prepared to enroll.
• Solution: OHO Interactive deployed a full-funnel marketing campaign, including a full redesign of Champlain’s website to enhance user experience and conversion. The agency conducted targeted SEO, launched paid search and social campaigns, and geofenced high-traffic areas to optimize lead generation. The program pages were also revamped for better content and lead capture, while blog content was integrated and optimized to drive traffic.
• Results: OHO Interactive’s efforts doubled the organic traffic within a year, leading to a 16% increase in graduate enrollments YoY. Notably, the client’s PPC conversion rates grew by 71%, website leads increased by 30%, cost-per-acquisition decreased by 41%, and organic search leads rose by 50%.

Check OHO Interactive Agency Profile

3. Spark451

• Best for: Student search services
• Average hourly rate: Inquire
• Minimum budget: $1,000-$10,000
• Founded: 2011
• Size: 50-99
• Location: Westbury, NY
• Notable clients: University of Bridgeport, North Central College, Yeshiva University, McDaniel College, SUNY Maritime College

Spark451 leverages technology, creativity, data, and analytics to craft comprehensive enrollment marketing strategies for higher education institutions. Its services include student search strategies, lead generation, communications strategies, yield programs, transfer marketing, and graduate student marketing. Spark451 offers multichannel digital marketing, search engine marketing, and audience building and targeting to ensure favorable enrollment rates.

Spark451 Success Story

• Challenge: The University of Bridgeport enlisted Spark451’s services to reshape its reputation and enhance its brand appeal. Despite its scenic location and diverse academic programs, the institution struggled with public perception and a lack of a cohesive brand identity.
• Solution: Spark451 initiated the collaboration with student search and yield campaigns. The agency’s creative team redesigned the university’s marketing materials across print, email, and digital mediums, including viewbooks and brochures, focusing on personalization and targeted messaging. Spark451 also utilized predictive modeling to segment and tailor communications for each stage of the enrollment funnel.
• Results: The collaboration led to a significant boost in applications and enrollments, with the client doubling the number of applicants between 2014 and 2018 and achieving a 15% increase in enrollment. Spark451 also played a key role in transforming the university’s public image as the safest campus in Connecticut.

Check Spark451 Agency Profile

4. Creative Communication Associates

• Best for: Outbound marketing
• Average hourly rate: Inquire
• Minimum budget: Inquire
• Founded: 1983
• Size: Under 49
• Location: Albany, NY
• Notable clients: New York School of Interior Design, Thomas Jefferson University, Lim College, Siena College, Moore College of Art & Design

As a higher education marketing agency, Creative Communication Associates (CCA) offers tailored services, including institutional rebranding, enrollment marketing, content marketing, market research, visual asset creation, and advancement campaigns. CCA’s digital marketing portfolio has been designed to curate and promote inspiring, informative content that conveys the institution’s academic spirit and campus culture. As such, it covers content development, keyword research, SEO services, storytelling, email promotions, and more.

Creative Communication Associates Success Story

• Challenge: The New York School of Interior Design (NYSID) aimed to boost lead generation for its Institute for Continuing and Professional Studies (ICPS), which offers over 100 courses. The client needed a strategy to attract new prospects and reinforce NYSID’s authority in interior design education.
• Solution: CCA developed a comprehensive campaign featuring a mix of outbound media tactics and sponsored content. This included paid search and social ads using interest-based look-alike and retargeting strategies, complemented by sponsored articles and media through Interior Design magazine and Apartment Therapy.
• Results: The campaign achieved 1,600 conversions and garnered 11 million impressions. Click-through rates increased by 44% YoY, significantly boosting engagement and lead generation for NYSID’s ICPS.

Check Creative Communication Associates Agency Profile

5. GMB

• Best for: Local marketing
• Average hourly rate: Inquire
• Minimum budget: Inquire
• Founded: 2002
• Size: Under 49
• Location: Greenville, SC
• Notable clients: Maryville College, Calvin University, Wake Forest University, Hardin-Simmons University, Grand Rapids Community College

GMB aids schools and universities in elevating their student experiences through digital marketing, planning, brand strategy, and enrollment marketing. With over 20 years of experience and a team of more than 200 professionals across five learning hubs, GMB crafts cohesive marketing campaigns covering content creation, advertising, target audience research, social media marketing, and analytics and reporting. Its holistic approach ensures that all elements — from engaging brand campaigns to innovative space design — support educational objectives and elevate student success.

GMB Success Story

• Challenge: Maryville College sought GMB’s assistance in establishing visibility and trust for its new brand and building awareness around its hospitality program. With a lack of familiarity with the target audience, the challenge was to effectively communicate the unique value of the college’s program and brand.
• Solution: GMB crafted a comprehensive digital marketing campaign leveraging Maryville’s local advantages. The strategy included targeted paid search and social ads, sponsored content with local publications, and a focused digital approach within a 50-mile radius. The campaign emphasized local partnership opportunities with established hospitality venues in the area.
• Results: Through the collaboration with GMB, Maryville College’s campaign achieved over 22 million impressions, 125,000 clicks, and 930+ form submissions. Notably, 35% of the generated leads were for the new hospitality program, indicating a lucrative traction rate.

Check GMB Agency Profile

6. Higher Education Marketing

• Best for: Paid advertising
• Average hourly rate: $1
• Minimum budget: Inquire
• Founded: 2008
• Size: Under 49
• Location: Montreal, Canada
• Notable clients: Cumberland College, Business School Lausanne, ENSR International School, Webster University, Griffith College

Higher Education Marketing (HEM) specializes in digital strategies tailored for educational institutions. The agency crafts multichannel strategies that enhance student recruitment through social media, SEO, content marketing, and paid advertising. Beyond marketing, HEM provides Mautic CRM and student portal solutions to streamline student engagement and effectively manage communications.

Higher Education Marketing Success Story

• Challenge: Cumberland College collaborated with HEM to enhance its student enrollment figures, prioritizing inbound marketing and paid advertising for domestic and international audiences.
• Solution: Higher Education Marketing implemented a comprehensive digital marketing strategy, including content creation in English and French, on-page SEO, and management of various paid advertising platforms such as Google Ads, Meta Ads, TikTok Ads, and user-generated content ads. These efforts were intended to reduce the cost per lead (CPL) while boosting visibility and engagement.
• Results: The collaboration resulted in a 21.64% increase in overall traffic, a 27.53% rise in users from SEO, and a 95% increase in overall lead flow between September and November 2023 compared to the same period in 2022. Leads from SEO traffic likewise surged by 386%, contributing to a 20% to 35% increase in admissions at each intake and improved student retention.

Check Higher Education Marketing Agency Profile

7. Sextant Marketing

• Best for: SEO services
• Average hourly rate: Inquire
• Minimum budget: Inquire
• Founded: 2015
• Size: Under 49
• Location: Tampa, FL
• Notable clients: Fresno Pacific University, University of Virginia, St. Francis College, University of South Dakota, Kentucky State University

Sextant Marketing offers tailored services to help colleges and universities navigate the complexities of higher education marketing. Its full-funnel marketing specialty spans research, strategy, and deployment. It covers message development, audience segmentation, forecasting, market positioning, media planning and buying, creative asset development, SEO, and lead qualifying and nurturing. With over 25 university partners, support for 900+ programs, and service to more than 10,000 students, Sextant Marketing’s work is geared toward strengthening recruitment and retention rates.

Sextant Marketing Success Story

• Challenge: Fresno Pacific University aimed to reverse several years of declining enrollment in its continuing professional development programs for educators. Success was primarily measured through online course purchases, so increasing revenue from course enrollment became a key objective.
• Solution: Sextant Marketing performed an SEO audit, improved website and content strategies, and targeted paid search and social media campaigns. To elevate the appeal of the academic programs, the agency optimized the course pages and created new content, supplementing the effort with advanced link-building to boost organic traffic and conversions.
• Results: Within a year, FPU registered an 82% increase in organic users and a 44% rise in organic lead conversions.

Check Sextant Marketing Agency Profile

8. iFactory

• Best for: Keyword research and optimization
• Average hourly rate: $1
• Minimum budget: Inquire
• Founded: 1994
• Size: Under 49
• Location: Boston, MA
• Notable clients: North Hennepin Community College, Lane Community College, Manhattanville College, Boston Medical Center, Hadley

iFactory is a higher education marketing agency that focuses on user-centric deliverables. Its comprehensive service portfolio includes research and strategy, content audit, content writing and migration, governance, SEO, content strategy, UX design, and web development. By integrating these elements, iFactory delivers customized marketing solutions that enhance return on investment (ROI) and conversion rates, ensuring each institution’s unique goals are met with precision and creativity.

iFactory Success Story

• Challenge: North Hennepin Community College's outsourced SEO efforts yielded only moderate results. Facing challenges with low engagement, the client needed a website to launch its new brand effectively, attract new users, and increase applications.
• Solution: iFactory developed a mobile-first website that aligned with the college’s new brand standards and optimized the user experience to simplify the application process. To enhance organic search traffic, iFactory conducted comprehensive keyword research for over 40 pages of UX content and implemented a 12-month SEO campaign, entailing keywords for over 80 programs and creating SEO content templates for all program pages.
• Results: The new website and SEO strategy led to notable improvements — a 14% increase in new student enrollment, a 40% increase in in-state organic search sessions, and a 45% improvement in website health metrics.

Check iFactory Agency Profile

9. Echo Delta

• Best for: Enrollment marketing
• Average hourly rate: $1
• Minimum budget: Inquire
• Founded: 2013
• Size: Under 49
• Location: Winter Haven, FL
• Notable clients: Evergreen State College, Florida Polytechnic University, Saint Leo University, University of the Ozarks, DIGARC, South Dakota Mines

Echo Delta combines expert enrollment management with innovative marketing strategies to help institutions attract, enroll, and retain students. Across its portfolio, the higher education marketing agency offers enrollment consulting, brand positioning, creative services, email and marketing automation, and integrated media strategies. Echo Delta’s media strategy covers media planning and buying, digital advertisement, SEO services, campaign analysis, and reporting.

Echo Delta Success Story

• Challenge: Evergreen State College wanted to modernize its recruitment and communication approaches, moving beyond in-person methods to digital channels. The college struggled with effectively promoting its academic model and needed help implementing its new HubSpot marketing automation platform.
• Solution: Echo Delta developed a targeted enrollment campaign to showcase Evergreen’s unique learning environment and diverse culture. It created engaging email content, custom landing pages, and a comprehensive marketing automation strategy. The campaign featured a unified visual style and clear messaging to effectively communicate the college’s values and benefits.
• Results: The new strategy led to an 8% click-through rate and a 41% open rate, surpassing industry benchmarks. With the newly set up marketing automation system, Evergreen State College improved its digital engagement, attracting and informing prospective students.

Check Echo Delta Agency Profile

10. Vital Design

• Best for: Website design and development
• Average hourly rate: $149
• Minimum budget: $10,000-$25,000
• Founded: 2001
• Size: 100-249
• Location: Portsmouth, NH
• Notable clients: University of San Diego, University of Cincinnati, Colorado State University, University of New Hampshire, The Culinary Institute of America

Vital Design specializes in higher education marketing and website design tailored to boost student enrollment. Its marketing capabilities include managing PPC campaigns, creating impactful content, and utilizing data-driven strategies to optimize lead generation and conversion. With a focus on traditional and online education, Vital Design ensures institutions reach their target audiences effectively, with its excellence affirmed by more than 40 Web & Davey Awards.

Vital Design Success Story

• Challenge: The University of San Diego’s Professional and Continuing Education (PCE) program had underperforming digital marketing campaigns due to technical issues with its website. The site’s dynamic URLs hindered SEO, and the lack of SEO-rich content further impeded organic traffic growth.
• Solution: Vital Design implemented a comprehensive site overhaul, integrating WordPress with the Destiny One CMS to address structural limitations and enhance SEO. It simultaneously created targeted, SEO-optimized content and developed a content strategy to drive early-stage leads through premium resources.
• Results: Post-launch, organic traffic surged by 653% YoY, with some blog posts seeing up to a 20,000% session increase. The program’s sessions grew by 306%, and early-stage leads from content downloads skyrocketed by 1,288%, reaching 347 monthly leads.

Check Vital Design Agency Profile

How We Picked the Best Education Marketing Agencies

To identify the best education marketing agencies, we thoroughly analyzed their portfolios, client feedback, case studies, industry reputation, team strengths, and leadership quality. Our marketing experts developed a scoring system to rank them based on several key criteria:

• Reviews: Assessment of service quality, client satisfaction, and the agency’s reliability
• Portfolio: Successful higher education marketing campaigns with documented results and client testimonials
• Awards and press: Recognition and accolades from respected third-party sources that underscore the agency’s innovation and excellence
• Team bios: Overview of team members’ specialized knowledge and experience in developing and executing effective higher education marketing strategies
• Top services: Core offerings and focus areas
• Higher education marketing expertise: Proficiency in creating impactful marketing campaigns that enhance institutional visibility and propel student enrollment

Visit the DesignRush Agency Ranking Methodology for more information on how we research agencies.

10 Most Popular Higher Education Marketing Agencies Compared