Earlier this year, the federal government announced its goal to double the number of international students and researchers in Canada by the year 2022. It’s a strategy aimed at moving Canada (currently the 7^th most popular destination for international students) up the consideration list for those seeking a foreign education. If successful, the next decade could bring up to 450,000 students onto our shores.

As someone who arrived in this country as an international student, it’s a market I’ve seen grow exponentially. The past decade alone has shown a 94% increase in the annual number of international students entering Canada. Considering these students spend upwards of $8 billion in Canada, and help create more than 81,000 jobs, this growth is good news.

Yet, as September rolls along, with its typical mélange of Back-to-School specials and “New to Canada” campaigns, I find it hard to ignore a gaping hole of opportunity: Why aren’t brands investing in targeting international students?

In 2012, the total number of international students in Canada was 265,428— higher than the 257,887 coming in as permanent residents. Compared to the average immigrant, these students are also more likely to be equipped with a Canadian education, possible local work experience and some degree of assimilation before graduating into the workforce— important factors in ensuring lucrative employment.

Plus, in most countries around the world, a foreign education is a luxury reserved for the financially sound. Depending on where these students come from, they might even arrive with a high level of disposable income to be spent on luxury brands and atypical comforts (there’s a reason why some Chinese student associations in the US are sponsored by Audi and Mercedes dealerships).

So what does this mean to marketers? International students typically fall into the chasm between new-comer, multicultural advertising and assimilated youth-oriented messaging. They’re too young to resonate with advertising focused at immigrants (where the bulls-eye is adults in their mid-30s, with established career and family), and too unassimilated to “get” mainstream advertising aimed at young Canadians. Targeting them requires insights into the youth culture they originate from, and a nimble strategy that adapts to their stages of assimilation. It’s a strategy that’s been refined for multicultural consumers in Canada, and one that is important to build for this new market, especially for brands which cater to their immediate needs— phone service providers, looking to reach consumers before they enter the calling card habit of staying in touch, financial institutions (so money can be remitted from back home), school supplies (including stationary and electronics) and CPG brands looking to cultivate loyalty in an impressionable market.

There are challenges to addressing this opportunity. Foreign students flow in from a multitude of different countries— targeting each cultural imperative isn’t feasible. Moreover, mass-communications is a tricky proposition for such a niche sub-segment, with such unpredictable media habits. Fortunately, there are overarching trends to help streamline any international student strategy: Ontario and BC are home to the largest international student population in Canada, with China and India being the top two source countries for these students. If your brand already invests in multicultural marketing, you probably have some insights into these populations, already (they form 42% of the overall immigrant population). There are ways to circumvent the costlier media spend of TV, Print and Radio in this market— digital and social media (Skype, WeChat, QQ, Weibo, Facebook, etc.) are capable of giving you a much more targeted and economical reach. Also, the fact that these student communities are clustered around campuses allows for a narrow, geo-specific region for grassroots and experiential marketing.

And, of course, as these consumers gradually assimilate into the larger Canadian markets, you’re likely to see more of them resonating with your mainstream and/or multicultural marketing efforts. But, as is often the case with so many college memories, you never really forget your first brand love.

Ghostwritten on behalf of Meghna Srinivas, Director of Client Services, McCann Cultura.
Photo Courtesy: The Scientist Magazine.