Resources & Tools

Create a Steady Stream of Article Submissions

Create a Steady Stream of Article Submissions

Keeping a steady stream of quality submissions to your journal is a key component of your journal’s success. There are many ways to increase submissions, and Springer Nature offers services to make the process easier.

  • Stay updated on what’s being published in your journal’s field.
  • Look out for the hot topics in your field that will keep your journal relevant. There are many ways to do this. Attend relevant conferences in your field. Scan the conference program. Take note of session topics, presentations, important unpublished studies, and controversial post-presentation Q&As.
  • Review conference proceedings and meeting reports.
  • Sign-up for the table-of-content alerts of competitor journals.
  • Register for Recommended, a free tool from Springer Nature that delivers the most relevant papers to you across all publishers. By learning what you read across our platforms the tool will make recommendations across approximately 45,000 journals straight to your inbox.
  • The Transfer Desk allows you the option to accept manuscripts that have already been determined as a match for your journal. Review them for possible publication.

Go the extra mile by:

  • Setting up a bi-weekly or monthly recap with editorial board members to hear what they’re reading. This may be a quick phone call or simple e-mail exchange.

  • Creating a shared Google document with co-editors and board members to track the topics that you might want to solicit papers on.


Identify the right authors for your journal

  • Utilize your editorial board members to reach out to suitable authors in their network.

  • Springer Nature Link, BMC, and Nature.com make it easy to search for papers by discipline. Take note of the authors and the impact their papers have in terms of citations and Altmetrics scores, available on most journal article pages.

  • Reach out to your own network of contacts to see what they are working on.

  • Attend relevant conferences to meet potential authors in-person. Take note of hot topics, poster session themes, and the authors of posters that would make great paper topics.

  • Make institute visits and chat with key experts in your field.

Author considerations:

  • Leaders in cutting-edge research, high-profile researchers, or interesting new academics that show promise with their enthusiasm and forward-thinking attitude.

  • Researchers that are actively publishing and well-cited.

  • Speakers from meetings and conferences.

  • Well-respected and reliable researchers that inspire others in their field.

  • Regional leaders with authority on topics in your journal’s scope.


Make sure your journal is attractive to potential authors

  • Commission content in all areas covered by the journal’s scope.

  • Publish article collections in emerging areas.

  • Publish papers from authors who are well-published, well-cited, and respected.

  • Make it clear to potential authors that their work will be peer-reviewed.

  • Provide deadlines, but remain flexible within reason.

Keep track of your journal’s output:

  • Review the performance of your journal articles by reviewing citations, downloads, social media mentions, and any press coverage. Most of these items can be found on individual article pages on Springer Nature Link, BMC, and Nature.com.

  • Take note of the geographical coverage of your journal’s research.

  • Keep your editorial board engaged. Encourage them to sign-up for alerts from your journal and Springer Nature.