How to Start a Genealogy Business | Things I Wish I'd Known | Becoming a Professional Genealogist

People have been asking me questions about how to become a professional genealogist and how to start a genealogy business. In this video I'll discuss some of the things that have helped me in starting my business.
Please leave any questions or comments below :)
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Vanessa Bland
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[@fionafyr1337]

Completely agree you don’t need a degree to start a business - Most of the world’s successful business men and women don’t have a degree in their field or at all in most cases! Love this video great advice x

[@VanessaBland]

Thanks for watching :)

[@paulgorry8708]

Hello Vanessa, you give very sound advice here to people wishing to become professional genealogists. The advice is especially good in relation to the mistakes you made in your first attempt (I’m sure many people fall into those traps) and figuring out what fee you should charge a client. What you say about building up a library and the subscriptions you may need is also important. Now, where I (almost) totally disagree with you is in the two minutes in which you talk about qualifications and “certifications”. I take it what you mean by the latter is credentials from a relevant accrediting body. Of course, I agree that you don’t need to have either qualifications (by which I mean a diploma or degree from an academic course) or credentials / accreditation. Genealogy isn’t a regulated profession, as you say, and I like the fact that people have the opportunity to take various routes to becoming professional. I disagree when you say that credentials are “not a guarantee”. They are a guarantee that the genealogist has more than a basic knowledge, that they have experience of conducting research on behalf of clients, that they should provide a satisfactory service and that, if they don’t come up to scratch, there is a professional organisation from which you may seek redress. To gain credentials a genealogist needs to have a track record, so there is a period in which relatively new professionals won’t have that form of accreditation. But credentials aren’t just a decoration. Decades of work by committed professional genealogists have gone into establishing and maintaining standards of competence. This is not just to look good to clients. There are various reasons why credentials are important to any business that can be regarded as a profession. The two basic reasons here are (1) proof of competence that the professional may advertise and (2) consumer protection. I acknowledge that there are really good genealogists who have never sought credentials or for whom relevant credentials aren’t available (because of language or geographical location) but they should be the exception. Unfortunately, those with relevant credentials are the exception now and clients can’t distinguish between a fancy website and accreditation. As you’ll guess by now, this is a subject I’m passionate about. That’s why I wrote a book (Credentials for Genealogists: Proof of the Professional) on the subject and why I’m always banging the drum for accrediting bodies. I believe in the profession of genealogy and I want it to survive as a true profession. I fear that the way things are going it will dissolve within a decade into the free-for-all that existed before professional credentials began to be made available to genealogists in the 1960s. Sorry to go off on a rant! As I said, apart from those two minutes I was in full agreement with your sound advice.

[@VanessaBland]

Hi Paul, Thanks for the comment! I do see your point regarding the topic of credentials. I didn't go into a lot of depth there, but perhaps I'll consider making another video on this topic. Is your book still available to purchase anywhere? I appreciate the feedback :)

[@peteberrie]

Hi Vanessa. Good to see you do this as some sound advice to new starters. You've covered some good and practical pointers on things that people might not think about in the excitement of starting a new business. Paul's comments about qualifications really hit me between the eyes - because I know he's right. I've "done" genealogy for around 30 years and offered professional (i.e. paid for) service for around 5 years now. I'm really torn over the qualification point because I know it's the right thing to do and I'm conscious that I haven't done it, but I'm put off by the time it would take to do it properly. On a practical level, I've found that this has one main drawback. All the research I do is based on my experience alone and that means that I come across new challenges from time to time. Sometimes this can be very hard work because I have to identify the right research sources and, perhaps, the research method before I can complete the actual research. My basic research skills are very sound (for career reasons that I won't bore you with) so I generally cope OK., but I know I'm not giving as good value for money and as thorough a service as I might if I had the academic understanding. And, worse that that, I may get it wrong or miss some details that would shed light on a historical point that would have been of interest to my customer. Now that I've semi-retired, I spend a significant percentage of my waking hours every day on genealogy. So I'm reading and researching all the time and the gaps in my experience will slowly erode over time so by the time I'm done I could even be a real expert. The reality is that I know more about the subject than the people I'm helping and as long as I don't abuse that position, I feel it's a fair way to do business. However, if I had my time again, I would do all the formal qualifications I could lay my hands on - both in terms of genealogy and in terms of running a small business (marketing and sales especially!). On Paul's point about consumer protection, I also agree. In my own case, I know (hand on heart) that I would not bill a customer who wasn't absolutely happy with my service. It hasn't happened yet but I would not hesitate if they had a good case. So I suppose this is a case of "don't do as I do, do as I say" and I wholeheartedly recommend formal qualifications and membership of a professional body. In the final analysis, Paul is right that this matters.

[@VanessaBland]

Hi Pete, Thanks for the comment! It's great to hear from somebody who isn't certified but still advocates for certification. I'm going to do some further research on this topic and perhaps make a follow up video. I probably didn't do it justice in the short space of time that I gave it. I am still learning myself and any feedback is very welcome so thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts :)

[@zachariaholenik8748]

You convinced me to pursue a career in freelance genealogy. I have never done it. My uncle whom passed was who our family looked toward for some family history. I’m inspired by him to take the lead in going forward with my genealogy and family tree but by taking it much further and deeper. I want to be able to build off the experience I gain from my own and hopefully start a business of my own. Are there any other tips and advice you could give since this video is a year old? Such as the best subscriptions to have and organizations to be a part of? The best certificate to have? Marketing tips? I live in the USA.

[@VanessaBland]

Yay that's great!!! One thing I'd definitely add to this video is to network. Use your social media accounts including LinkedIn to add other genealogists and get talking with them. I've found the community to be really welcoming and friendly. Those networks will help you so much. Also, I recommend starting a blog on your website. These could be written or videos, but they will help drive traffic to your website and connect with people researching in your field. I couldn't tell you the best subscriptions, it's personal choice, but perhaps try a few out (even just using trial periods, or one-month subscriptions) and see what they all offer. If you want to be certified, I believe the place to go for Americans is bcgcertification.org but there may be others too. Marketing I'd mainly suggest having a strong social media presence. Share a certain amount of info for free, eg. tutorials and tips and share them on Facebook or Twitter, etc. I have found that lots of people that are googling for answers come across these things and go back to my website. Potential customers see that you are knowledgable and want to work with you. I hope this all helps. Best of luck with your business venture :)

[@AnthonyRodriguezNYC]

Thank you for this video!

[@SlurmsMackenzie187]

Thanks for the great advice, really good video and great points made

[@davidwoodard9470]

Hello my name is David and I was wondering how is the market for a genealogy business

[@VanessaBland]

Competitive, there are many other professional genealogists as well as a lot of wonderful help for amateurs out there. If you can find a niche, or an area that is difficult for most people (eg. if you're close to some archives or something) that would help! Good luck :)

[@heatherlee863]

Any marketing tips or tools? So we don't do as you did at first, building a website and waiting for clients to magically appear xD

[@VanessaBland]

Utilise social media, choose one or two platforms and do your best to regularly contribute and make connections to others in the field. Give people tips, start conversations etc so they can see your skills. Network, use LinkedIn, join societies etc, make connections with other people in the industry. They'll connect you with opportunities. Try to figure out some SEO on your website, I found many people were finding me via my blog. I got better at using keywords that people were searching for. If you're able to, do some in person events, talks or online workshops. Teach people the basics. They'll come to learn from you but once they see how knowledgable you are in that topic, they may ask you to do further work for them, or recommend you to friends. Get business cards are give them to everybody!! I hope these ideas help :) Good luck!