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Direct Marketing

GeoHuman: People, Place, and Power is committed to conducting all direct marketing activities in an ethical, transparent, accurate, and non-intrusive manner. Any communication made on behalf of the journal, including calls for papers, editorial invitations, reviewer invitations, special issue announcements, and other promotional messages, must be appropriate, well targeted, and relevant to the recipient’s academic field.

The journal does not engage in aggressive, excessive, misleading, or unsolicited mass marketing. All promotional communication must accurately represent the journal’s aims and scope, editorial policies, peer review process, publication fees, indexing status, publisher identity, and publication schedule.

1. Purpose

This policy aims to ensure that all marketing and promotional activities of GeoHuman: People, Place, and Power are conducted responsibly and in accordance with international standards of transparency and best practice in scholarly publishing.

The policy is designed to protect authors, reviewers, editors, readers, and partner institutions from misleading claims, inappropriate solicitation, spam-like communication, and unethical publishing practices.

2. Scope

This policy applies to all direct marketing activities conducted by or on behalf of GeoHuman: People, Place, and Power, including:

  1. Calls for papers.
  2. Calls for special issue proposals.
  3. Invitations to submit manuscripts.
  4. Invitations to join the editorial board.
  5. Invitations to serve as reviewers.
  6. Conference-related announcements.
  7. Email newsletters.
  8. Social media promotion.
  9. Website announcements.
  10. Promotional materials distributed by the journal, publisher, editors, or authorized representatives.

3. Principles of Direct Marketing

All direct marketing activities must follow these principles:

  1. Truthfulness
    All information about the journal must be accurate, verifiable, and not misleading.
  2. Relevance
    Invitations and promotional messages must be sent only to individuals or institutions whose expertise, research interests, or professional activities are relevant to the journal’s aims and scope.
  3. Transparency
    The journal must clearly identify its title, publisher, website, contact details, publication policies, peer review process, and fees, where applicable.
  4. Non-intrusiveness
    The journal must avoid excessive, repetitive, or aggressive promotional communication.
  5. Academic Integrity
    Marketing activities must not compromise editorial independence, peer review integrity, or publication ethics.
  6. Respect for Recipients
    Recipients must be able to decline further promotional communication.

4. Accuracy of Journal Information

All direct marketing materials must accurately state:

  1. The full journal title.
  2. The publisher name.
  3. The official journal website.
  4. The aims and scope of the journal.
  5. The type of articles accepted.
  6. The peer review process.
  7. The publication frequency.
  8. The open access policy.
  9. The copyright and licensing policy.
  10. The article processing charge policy.
  11. The journal’s current indexing status.
  12. The contact information of the editorial office.

The journal must not claim to be indexed in any database unless the indexing status has been officially confirmed and can be verified through the database website.

5. Prohibited Marketing Practices

The journal prohibits the following practices:

  1. Claiming false or unverified indexing status.
  2. Claiming false impact factors or misleading metrics.
  3. Sending mass invitations to authors outside the journal’s scope.
  4. Using aggressive or repeated email solicitation.
  5. Promising guaranteed acceptance.
  6. Promising unrealistically fast publication without proper peer review.
  7. Hiding publication fees or charges.
  8. Misrepresenting the peer review process.
  9. Using the names of editors, reviewers, universities, or institutions without permission.
  10. Inviting scholars to editorial roles without transparent responsibilities.
  11. Misleading authors about publication timelines, indexing, or journal reputation.
  12. Using deceptive email subject lines or unofficial sender identities.
  13. Promoting special issues without proper editorial oversight.
  14. Advertising the journal in a way that may be confused with predatory publishing practices.

6. Calls for Papers

Calls for papers must be relevant, accurate, and consistent with the journal’s aims and scope.

Each call for papers should include:

  1. Journal title.
  2. Publisher name.
  3. Official journal website.
  4. Scope of the journal.
  5. Accepted article types.
  6. Submission link.
  7. Publication schedule.
  8. Peer review process.
  9. APC or publication fee information.
  10. Contact information.
  11. Copyright and license information.
  12. Special issue information, if applicable.

Calls for papers must not imply guaranteed publication or acceptance.

7. Email Communication

Email communication must be professional, respectful, and targeted.

Marketing emails must:

  1. Use an official journal or publisher email address.
  2. Clearly identify the sender.
  3. Use a clear and honest subject line.
  4. Explain why the recipient is being contacted.
  5. Provide accurate journal information.
  6. Include the official journal website.
  7. Provide an option to decline future promotional emails.
  8. Avoid excessive follow-up messages.

The journal does not support spam, automated mass solicitation, or irrelevant promotional campaigns.

8. Social Media Promotion

The journal may use social media to promote published articles, calls for papers, journal announcements, editorial updates, and scholarly events.

Social media promotion must:

  1. Present accurate information.
  2. Avoid exaggerated claims.
  3. Respect authors’ and reviewers’ confidentiality.
  4. Avoid disclosing unpublished manuscript information.
  5. Avoid misleading claims about indexing, ranking, or impact.
  6. Link to the official journal website or article landing page.

9. Special Issue Promotion

Special issue promotion must be conducted under editorial supervision.

All special issue announcements must clearly state:

  1. The special issue theme.
  2. Guest editor names and affiliations.
  3. Submission deadline.
  4. Peer review process.
  5. Article processing charge policy.
  6. Publication timeline.
  7. Scope and expected contribution.
  8. Official submission link.

Guest editors are not allowed to promise acceptance or bypass the journal’s peer review process.

10. Editorial and Reviewer Invitations

Invitations to join the editorial board or reviewer pool must be sent only to scholars with relevant expertise.

Such invitations must include:

  1. Journal title and publisher.
  2. Journal aims and scope.
  3. Expected role and responsibilities.
  4. Term of appointment, where applicable.
  5. Ethical obligations.
  6. Conflict of interest requirements.
  7. Official journal contact information.

The journal must not list individuals as editors or reviewers without their explicit consent.

11. Indexing and Metrics Claims

The journal will only mention indexing status that has been officially confirmed.

The journal must not use:

  1. Fake impact factors.
  2. Misleading metrics.
  3. Unverified indexing claims.
  4. Logos of indexing services without permission.
  5. Statements implying Scopus, Web of Science, DOAJ, or other database inclusion before official acceptance.

If the journal is under evaluation by an indexing database, this may be stated only when accurate and verifiable, without implying acceptance.

12. Article Processing Charges and Fees

All information about publication fees must be clear and transparent.

If the journal does not charge any fees, the journal must state that there are no submission fees, article processing charges, publication fees, or page charges.

If the journal introduces fees in the future, the information must be publicly available before submission and must not be disclosed only after acceptance.

13. Responsibility

The Editor-in-Chief, Managing Editor, and Publisher are responsible for ensuring that all direct marketing activities follow this policy.

Any person conducting promotional activities on behalf of the journal must comply with this policy and must not act independently in ways that may damage the journal’s integrity.

14. Complaints Related to Marketing

Authors, reviewers, readers, or institutions may submit complaints if they receive misleading, excessive, irrelevant, or inappropriate promotional messages from or on behalf of the journal.

Complaints should be sent to the editorial office. The journal will review the complaint and take corrective action where necessary.

Corrective actions may include:

  1. Correcting inaccurate information.
  2. Removing misleading promotional materials.
  3. Stopping inappropriate email campaigns.
  4. Updating website information.
  5. Issuing clarification where needed.
  6. Reviewing the conduct of individuals involved in marketing activities.

15. Policy Review

This Direct Marketing Policy is reviewed periodically to ensure that the journal’s promotional activities remain ethical, transparent, and aligned with international best practices in scholarly publishing.