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OJS for EveryoneThe Practical GuidebookRSYN Research LLP

Tutorial: Plum Analytics Integration

Role: Journal Manager / Site Administrator
Time: 15–30 minutes
OJS Version: 3.5+

Plum Analytics (part of Elsevier) provides article-level metrics — usage, captures, mentions, social media activity, and citations — displayed via PlumX Widgets. This tutorial covers how to add PlumX Widgets to your OJS article pages.

Before You Start​

  • You have Journal Manager or Site Administrator access in OJS.
  • Your articles have DOIs registered with CrossRef (PlumX widgets use DOIs to identify articles). See Enable DOIs with CrossRef.
  • Your institution or journal has a Plum Analytics subscription, or you are using the free PlumX widget tier.
Free vs Paid

The basic PlumX Widget is free to embed and shows a subset of metrics. Full Plum Analytics dashboards require an Elsevier subscription.

Option A — Custom HTML Block (Easiest)​

For journals without a dedicated OJS plugin:

Step 1 — Get the PlumX Widget Script​

  1. Go to plumanalytics.com/learn/about-metrics/.
  2. Navigate to the PlumX Widgets section.
  3. Copy the standard widget embed code. It looks like:
<script type="text/javascript" src="//cdn.plu.mx/widget-popup.js"></script>
<a href="https://plu.mx/plum/a/?doi=YOUR_DOI" 
   class="plumx-plum-print-popup" 
   data-site="plum" 
   data-hide-when-empty="true">
</a>

Step 2 — Embed via Custom Header Plugin​

  1. Go to Settings → Website → Plugins → Installed Plugins.
  2. Enable Custom Header Plugin.
  3. Click Settings next to the Custom Header Plugin.
  4. Paste the PlumX widget script in the header field.
  5. Save.

The widget script loads on every page. Replace YOUR_DOI with the article DOI in templates, or use the approach in Option B below.

Option B — Template Override (Advanced)​

For Site Administrators who can modify OJS template files:

  1. Locate the article detail template: templates/frontend/pages/article.tpl (or copy to your custom theme's templates directory).
  2. Add the PlumX widget code inside the metrics/statistics section, substituting {$article->getStoredPubId('doi')} for the DOI.
  3. Clear the template cache: Administration → Clear Template Cache.

Step 3 — Test the Widget​

  1. Navigate to a published article that has a registered DOI.
  2. The PlumX badge should appear showing usage, captures, and citations.
  3. Click the badge to expand the full metrics popup.

Troubleshooting​

ProblemSolution
Widget shows but no dataThe DOI may not yet be indexed by Plum; allow 1–7 days for new DOIs
Widget does not appearCheck that the script is loading (browser developer tools → Network tab)
DOI not foundVerify the DOI is correctly registered and resolves at doi.org

Next Steps​