Implementing an influencer campaign for the Royal Institution’s Christmas Lectures 2023

With the exception of a pause during WWII, the Royal Institution’s Christmas Lectures have run continuously since 1825. No mean feat, this annual tradition has made a huge impact on the accessibility of science for the general public, which is why we have loved working with the Ri over the past six years. 

After consistently robust media campaigns, we decided, for Christmas 2023, to implement an influencer campaign to complement  a more traditional media-led approach. The Ri were keen to raise awareness of the 2023 Christmas Lectures in the 13-19 age group, and we suggested that developing a social media influencer campaign was the best approach for targeting this demographic.

We began by carefully considering which types of content creators to approach – we needed influencers that were curious, thoughtful and age-appropriate to align with the Christmas Lecture ethos and brand. After presenting several options to the team at the Ri, we settled on three strands of influencers – ‘science with a twist’, ‘booktokers’ and ‘things to do in London’. 

In the science space, we joined forces with the wonderful Pandora Dewan and Nina Chhita (Nina.draws.scientists). Both creators produce science-driven content, sharing insightful nuggets of history and discovery with their followers. Nina and Pandora are avid fans of the Christmas Lectures, so they were thrilled to be invited to a behind-the-scenes tour of the Ri during the busy pre-Christmas filming period. In addition to seeing how the Lectures are made, the influencers also received a tour of the Faraday Museum and archives with the Head of Heritage and Collections, Charlotte New. 

We were so pleased with the wonderful content Nina and Pandora produced off the back of their tour. Pandora posted an Instagram Reel sharing her favourite piece of information from the Lectures – the potential to understand whales by using AI to recognise patterns in their language. Nina chronicled the history of the iconic Christmas Lectures and shared her favourite topic – The Chemical History of a Candle. Their insightful and inquisitive content totally aligned with the Christmas Lectures ethos, and included the key call to action to watch the Christmas Lectures on BBC iPlayer. 

The Ri has a wonderful library and a huge collection of rare first-edition books. Looking beyond science influencers, we decided to approach ‘booktokers’. Creators with a passion for books were invited to explore the library and archives, producing evergreen content showcasing the Ri as a unique day out in London for book lovers. Charlottechaoticbooksxo uploaded a lovely video all about the Ri’s vast collection. 

The team at the Royal Institution was impressed by the strategic and thoughtful nature  of our influencer campaign. We helped them forge strong relationships with content creators who they can work with going forward as they continue to target a teenage demographic.