As a genealogist I have found that some of my clients and potential clients have needed help with what to expect and finding the correct professional genealogist to fit their needs.  I have found that some people come to professional genealogist without know what to expect or which ones might ones might actually benefit them the best.

I always am aware that clients will always decide for themselves who they hire.  What I can do is help you make a good choice regardless of if it is me or some other professional genealogist that you hire.  If you never hired a genealogist before the Association of Professional Genealogists or APG, a professional genealogy group I belong to, has a great article which I recommend you reading.

  What should you look for when looking to hire a genealogist?  Ask about fees and costs, not just the hourly rates, along with asking for a possible estimate based on what you want to know.  Check if someone will charge gas mileage as well.  Unless you use a website such as Genealogy Freelancers, than I would recommend having a signed contract.

Issues you might discover while looking for a genealogist is experience in the area where you are want to hire someone.  If it was me, the genealogist must have experience in the location or specialty in which you need research.  Copies of records are fine if that’s all you can afford or is all that available, but it is possible for copies or transcriptions to have errors in them.

I almost forgot a tip.  Sometimes a genealogist in one part of a state might be more helpful to you than another part.  Why?  Well I have experience in doing genealogy research in Western Kentucky and I have limited experience outside this area.  I have oftentimes recommended a people who have contacted me to the APG website along with various other websites to find someone who can help.  The reason I do this is because it isn’t I cannot help, but because I want them to get the best help.

Today I’m writing my first blog post on my genealogy blog.  This is not my first blog as I had one a long time ago, but this is a new attempt to write.  My genealogy journey though began back in 1999 when my grandmother made what seemed to her like a simple request to find some information about her family.  She asked me since I knew how to use the internet.  I soon realized that the request was slightly more complicated than I initially thought and there was a lot to learn.

I eventually started helping others through volunteer research, resurveying a cemetery, able to obtain a free military tombstone for a Civil War veteran, and I even opened my genealogy business.  I have enjoyed helping others finding their ancestors.   I opened the business with this as one of the many reasons.  It took time and plenty of learning for me to even begin to call myself a professional genealogist.  I am using this experience in this genealogy blog as a tool to educate those who visit.