Discoverability of open access books: How do we ensure that your research has the widest possible reach?

Why is discoverability an important topic? It is important to us, our authors and our readers that open access (OA) books are easily findable, discoverable and visible. This means that OA books need to be easily found through search engines and on our own websites – whether looking for a specific title, or through related keyword searches – and that all OA content needs to be clearly marked as such so that readers know it is free to download and re-use. One of the main motivations for authors and funders choosing OA for their research is to have as wide a readership as possible. Eighty-six percent of attendees at our 2018 Academic Book Week open access books event thought that ‘OA books help disseminate knowledge further than non-OA books’. One challenge for publishers is to understand user behaviour and how it can vary, as different search engines and discovery routes are favoured in different academic fields. Some researchers prefer to use their own library discovery systems or others might just ‘Google it’. As a publisher, we need to echo readers’ habits in order to ensure that our OA books are found easily. Our commitment to support the dissemination of our authors’ research We are dedicated to increasing the discoverability and visibility of our OA books in order to maximise the impact of our authors’ research. Our OA books are immediately available upon publication through free and unrestricted online access, and sharing and re-use of the work is perm...
Source: BioMed Central Blog - Category: General Medicine Authors: Tags: Open Access Publishing Source Type: blogs