How to choose keywords for a manuscript?

Table of Contents

Do you feel your article is being unnoticed? It can sometimes feel as if your work is sunk, in an ocean of millions of others, and not being found and read as often as you imagined. If this is the case, you are not alone. Unfortunately, in the internet era, just good research is hardly enough. A quality text edition of your manuscript and stunning presentations may be the next step for calling some attention, but making your work pop out from millions of others is a challenge that is often under thought by many researchers.

Actually, there are a few things in your power to help an article climb up search engine rankings. It all comes down to two concepts that you probably have heard a thousand times before: SEO and Keywords.

Working with SEO (search engine optimization): Basically, this means helping search engines find your article relevant for certain search terms on the internet. This is done by choosing strategic keywords that correspond to words in the internet user’s search. This way your article has the best chance to appear in a higher position within a probably (very) long list of other related research.
Choosing keywords for manuscripts: Keywords are words that capture the essence of your paper. They make your paper searchable (and findable!) and ensure that you get more citations. Therefore, it is important to include relevant keywords to help others find your paper. Don’t forget these simple tips, outlined below.

How to Select the Best Keywords for a Manuscript

The secret to choosing the best keywords for your manuscript is a matter of fine balance. On one hand, we recommend avoiding too many single-words (unless it is completely necessary) so that the search doesn’t render too unspecific. On the other hand, too many words may over-filter your article, making it more difficult to find.

There is also the tendency to add credibility to an article by selecting a lot of specialized keywords. However, that may actually dim the chances of your article being found. Rather than reducing your search chances to a specialized niche of experts, try to use more general terms used in literature to open your work to a more heterogeneous population.

Avoiding the duplication of words already in the article’s title is strongly recommended by journals. It is preferable to choose keywords that compliment the main topic of your research, including related words and/or methodology-specific terms.

Always remember to test your selected keywords. Do you think your article is difficult to find? Does the search pull up very similar articles to your own? Testing gives you the chance to tailor your keyword selection even further and, also very importantly, it can give you a valuable perspective of your “competitors.”

Making your article stand out is the ultimate challenge for its consumption. It might be daunting for researchers who feel overwhelmed by the digital world. However, don’t worry. Elsevier offers text editing services that not only provide excellent quality text for your manuscript, but also help you make the necessary amendments to fit it into your journal’s guidelines. This way, you are also ensuring that the keywords you chose as relevant line up with the journal’s requirements, making the whole process much easier.

Language Editing Services by Elsevier Author Services:

We know that, as an academic researcher, you have many things to do to stay relevant. Writing a manuscript is a crucial part of your endeavors.

That’s why we, at Elsevier Author Services, support you throughout your publication journey with a suite of products and services that help improve your manuscript before submission and beyond.