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How to Choose a Professional Genealogist
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Everyone hits a point in their genealogy when they need help. Some people are very interested in finding out about their heritage, but don’t have the time or the inclination to learn how to do their own research, so they turn to professionals from the start. Others love to do their own research, but start having trouble at a certain place in their tree. Is there anyone who hasn’t hit a brick wall somewhere? Sooner or later, most people interested in genealogy will think about hiring a professional.
This can be a daunting task. Your first decision will be whether to use a single researcher or a research company. There are pros and cons to each choice.
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Many people prefer to use a research company to help them with their research. Here are some of the reasons that make it worth using a company:
1) Every report is usually looked at by multiple genealogists. At Legacy Tree, our projects are peer-reviewed by at least three professional genealogists before they are sent to the client. Each genealogist needs to agree to the solidity of the project before it is acceptable to deliver to the client.
2) There are quality guarantees. At Legacy Tree, we back up our work. When clients are justifiably not happy with their report, we fix it for free. We want happy clients, because over 50% of our business is repeat orders from clients.
3) You can check ratings and quality easier. Legacy Tree has an A+ grade from the Better Business Bureau.
4) No matter where your genealogical adventures take you, companies have researchers who are experts in that geographic location. There is no need to do the work of finding a new researcher every time your ancestry jumps the pond to a different country. We can do it all.
5) The researchers we use are tried and tested and we know that they are excellent. We have seen their work and we know that they will serve our clients well.
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Individual Researchers - Do Your Homework
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With these advantages, why would anyone ever use an individual researcher? Budget is the number one reason. Companies cannot compete with individual researchers when it comes to cost. Those who are seeking to find good quality research on a shoestring will have to do their own legwork to find a good researcher. There are many great individual researchers out there. There are also many terrible ones. We at Legacy Tree hear too often from people who have "saved" money by using individual researchers, only to find that they need our help cleaning up the mess. It would have been cheaper to go the more expensive route in the first place.
However, there are things you can do to minimize this risk. Here are the steps one should take to find a good individual researcher:
First, you will need to decide on the expertise that your research requires. Are you stuck with an ancestor in New Jersey in colonial times? You will want to find a researcher who has spent many, many hours in colonial New Jersey records. Researchers generally specialize according to geographic location. They may also have a research specialty, such as African American or Native American. Deciding on the type of researcher you will need will narrow down your choices considerably.
How do you find them? The Association of Professional Genealogists has a free online directory of professional researchers.
You may search the directory in many different ways, but the best searches are by geographic specialty or just by specialty. This will give you a list of researchers who consider themselves able to help with your particular research problem. You should know that anyone who pays the fee can be a member of the Association of Professional Genealogists. The list is therefore just the first step.
Once you have your list in hand, it is time to interview the researchers. The directory will have contact information for them. Here are some questions that must be addressed:
1) What are their credentials? Are they accredited genealogists? Have they had years of experience? Do they have a degree in Family History? All of the researchers at Legacy Tree Genealogy meet some or all of these criteria.
2) Even with these credentials, researchers can be unacceptable. Get a list of references from them and call their clients to make sure that they have been happy with their work. This is absolutely critical. Make contact with at least five of their clients and get some feedback. You will be able to learn a great deal about the researcher before you pay them any money.
3) Ask the researcher if you could see a sample report. We have found that there are good researchers who do not know how to communicate their findings very well; there are also researchers who are good writers but their research skills are deficient. They can make their work sound good, when it is actually not sound research. This is very hard for the non-professional to assess, but read through the sample report and ask yourself the following questions: Was the writing clear? Do the findings sound logical? Does the writing sound professional? Were a variety of sources used in the research, and were they properly cited? And a question that you are supremely qualified to answer: Would I be happy with this report if it was done for me?
As you can probably see, this will take a lot of time and effort to find the right professional individual researcher. It is worth it, however, to take the time to make sure you have found the right researcher.
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Have you ever had the experience of cutting corners on cost and regretting it? My strangely silent, non-working garbage disposal is case in point for me right now. I do wish I had gone for the upgrade, but at the time it seemed so unnecessary. Counting repair costs, the upgrade would have been cheaper. Similarly, in the long run it may be less expensive to choose a professional research company. Those who are risk-averse would be better off choosing a company like Legacy Tree Genealogy.
Written by Sue Griffith, professional genealogist
(c)2012 Legacy Tree Genealogy
We wish you well as you decide how best to learn about your family tree. If you have questions, feel free to contact us.
Click here to see what clients have to say about our work.
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Legacy Tree is headquartered near the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah, the largest genealogical library in the world. We also order records through agents all over the globe.
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What do clients have to say about our work?
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What is the process you can expect when you order research through Legacy Tree Genealogy?
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