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OJS for EveryoneThe Practical GuidebookRSYN Research LLP

Academic Search Engine Optimization (ASEO)

Academic Search Engine Optimization (ASEO) is the practice of structuring your journal's content and metadata so that academic search engines and indexing databases can discover, index, and correctly represent your articles. Unlike commercial SEO, ASEO focuses on the specific requirements of scholarly databases.

Why ASEO Matters​

A well-indexed journal sees:

  • More citations — articles that are easy to find get cited more often.
  • More submissions — visible journals attract quality authors.
  • Library subscriptions — librarians discover and recommend indexed journals.
  • Funder compliance — many funders require open access and DOI registration that depends on proper indexing.

Getting Into Google Scholar​

Google Scholar is often the first place researchers search. Scholar crawls OJS journal websites automatically — but only if your site provides the correct metadata.

Step 1 — Enable the Google Scholar Plugin​

  1. Go to Settings → Website → Plugins → Installed Plugins.
  2. Find Google Scholar Indexing Plugin.
  3. Enable it.

This plugin inserts structured <meta> tags (Highwire Press format) into every article page. Without these tags, Scholar may not index your articles or may index them with incomplete metadata.

Step 2 — Ensure Robots.txt Does Not Block Crawlers​

Check that your robots.txt file (at https://yourdomain.com/robots.txt) does not disallow:

User-agent: Googlebot
Disallow:

If your OJS is installed in a subdirectory, also verify that directory is not blocked.

Step 3 — Complete Article Metadata​

Scholar requires complete metadata on every article page:

  • Full author names (given and family name)
  • Publication date
  • Journal title and ISSN
  • Volume and issue number
  • First and last page numbers (or article number)
  • DOI

In OJS, this metadata is pulled from the article's Publication tab. Ensure all fields are filled before publishing.

Step 4 — Provide Full-Text Files​

Scholar indexes full-text PDF content. Publishing a PDF galley is required for Scholar to extract and index the full text of your articles.

Step 5 — Stability of Article URLs​

Scholar caches article URLs at indexing time. If you move your journal domain or restructure URLs, Scholar links break. Ensure:

  • The journal URL is stable.
  • If you must change URLs, set up permanent 301 redirects from old to new URLs.

HTML Galleys and Discoverability​

Publishing HTML galleys alongside PDFs provides significant benefits:

BenefitWhy It Matters
Better indexingSearch engines extract and index full text from HTML more reliably than PDF
AccessibilityScreen readers work with HTML; PDFs are often inaccessible
Mobile readingHTML is responsive; PDFs require zoom and scroll on phones
Faster loadingHTML pages load faster than PDFs in browser
Social sharingHTML article pages produce rich previews when shared
Linked referencesHTML can link DOIs in reference lists automatically

To produce HTML galleys, see the Layout Editor Guide and the PKP Typesetting Guide.

DOAJ — Directory of Open Access Journals​

Why List in DOAJ​

  • DOAJ listing is widely recognised as a quality signal.
  • Libraries subscribe to DOAJ feeds to discover new journals for their collections.
  • Many indexing services and aggregators require DOAJ listing as a prerequisite.

DOAJ Requirements​

Before applying, ensure your journal meets DOAJ's basic criteria:

  • Fully open access (no paywall on current content)
  • Has an ISSN
  • Published at least 5 articles in the past year
  • Has a defined peer review process
  • Has an editorial board with identifiable members and affiliations
  • Publishes in a field covered by DOAJ

Apply at doaj.org/apply. After acceptance, use the DOAJ Export Plugin in OJS to submit article-level metadata.

Scopus and Web of Science​

These prestigious databases have more stringent requirements than DOAJ.

Scopus (Elsevier)​

Scopus requires:

  • Minimum of 2 years of publication history
  • ISSN and website
  • Regular peer-reviewed content
  • Editorial board with verifiable affiliations
  • English abstracts (other language content accepted alongside)
  • DOIs on articles (strongly recommended)

Apply via the Scopus Source Evaluation page.

Web of Science (Clarivate)​

Web of Science evaluates journals for several indexes (SCIE, SSCI, ESCI, AHCI). Requirements:

  • At least 1 year of continuous publication
  • ISSN and DOI
  • Peer review
  • Editorial board
  • Ethical publishing standards (COPE guidelines)
  • English abstracts

Apply via Clarivate's journal submission portal.

tip

Most journals should start with DOAJ before attempting Scopus or WoS. Establish a track record of regular, quality publication first.

Metadata Best Practices​

Good metadata is the foundation of all indexing. In OJS, on every article:

Metadata fieldBest practice
TitleComplete, accurate, sentence-case; no abbreviations
AbstractFull text, no citation in abstract, under word limit
Keywords4–8 relevant terms; include both specific and general
Author namesConsistent format: Given Name + Family Name; match ORCID
ORCID iDsCollect and display for all authors where possible
DOIAssign and register before publication
ISSNEntered in Journal Settings
Volume/IssueAccurate and consistent
Page numbersInclude first and last page or article number
Publication dateAccurate; use YYYY-MM-DD format where required
ReferencesComplete reference lists with DOIs where available

ORCID Integration for Discoverability​

ORCID iDs link authors to their published works across all journals and repositories:

  • Enable the ORCID Profile Plugin in OJS.
  • Collect ORCID iDs during submission.
  • Verified ORCID iDs are exported to CrossRef and appear on article pages.
  • Authors' ORCID records are automatically updated when articles with their ORCID are deposited to CrossRef.

Open Access and Visibility​

Open access articles are consistently cited more than paywalled articles (the "open access citation advantage"). Publishing open access maximises your journal's impact:

  • Set articles and issues to Open Access in OJS under Settings → Distribution → Access.
  • Apply a Creative Commons licence to clarify reuse permissions.
  • Register with DOAJ.
  • Deposit articles in repositories (Zenodo, subject repositories, institutional repositories) where permitted.

Quick ASEO Checklist​

  • Google Scholar Plugin enabled in OJS
  • Complete metadata on every published article (title, authors, date, ISSN, DOI, abstract, keywords)
  • PDF galleys published for all articles
  • HTML galleys published alongside PDFs (recommended)
  • DOIs registered with CrossRef
  • DOAJ listing (for open access journals)
  • ORCID iDs collected from authors
  • robots.txt allows academic crawlers
  • Journal URL is stable
  • ISSN entered in Journal Settings

Further Reading​