Hertz says Europe's main car rental companies often require drivers to be at least 25, but it is now targeting students aged 19 and above.
It is offering this niche customer group promotional rates with 15% off car rental and 20% off van rental.
Activity is focused online, with ads and an affiliate campaign driving traffic to a dedicated Hertz Students section of the Hertz website.
The campaign will initially run in the UK, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Germany, Spain, France, Italy, Switzerland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
Elizabeth Norris, director of brand and communications at Hertz Europe, said: "We are very impressed with the unique identity and campaign created by Iris to help us tap into this new market and drive brand loyalty.
"They really got under the skin of this new segment -- a market which is a very significant step forward by Hertz."
Iris recently worked closely with Hertz to create the brand identity for its car sharing club Connect by Hertz, which launched in January in London, Paris and New York and is due to be rolled out to more markets this year.