Like any other occupation, professional genealogists come in all shapes and sizes and with varying degrees of qualifications and professionalism. Hiring a professional from a distance, via the Internet or otherwise, can cause some concern about what to do if you don't get what you believe is your money's worth.

If you buy a service or product in your neighborhood, a dry cleaner for example, you have a level of assurance about the dry cleaner that may not be there when you hire a professional genealogist for the first time. You have a level of assurance and trust that:

1. The dry cleaner will be there tomorrow;
2. Many other people in the neighborhood also use the service; and
3. If there is a problem with some cleaning they did for you, that you can go back and get the problem fixed.

It's this reliability; assurance in numbers (that you are not the only one using the service); and committment to service that are often missing when you look for the services of a professional for the first time. Actually, it was the same situation when the dry cleaner first opened. It takes time and experience to the point where you are fully comfortable dropping off your finest cloths and trusting that they are cleaned with the professionalism you expect.

So the question is, "How can I gain that level of assurance and trust of a professional genealogist to know that I am getting the value for the money I paid?" Here are three tips to help you do just that.

1. Many professionals offer testimonials or references about their work. Check them out. Even if none are offered, nothing stops you from asking for the name and contact information of a previous client or two. If the professional does not want to provide such a name, use your best judgement in deciding whether or not you want to hire this person.
   
   
2. One of the best ways to gain confidence in the work of a professional genealogist is to start small. That is, before you pay a lot of money to a professional for a big research job, try them out with a few small jobs. See how quickly and accurately they work. Determine how important your business is to them. You will gradually get a feeling of assurance, or not, that a particular service is worth the money you are paying. 'Starting small' mitigates the risk of paying a large fee up front to a service about whom you know very little.
   
   
3. The people providing professional genealogy services vary in their credentials, expertise, and professionalism. The word 'professional' itself has a number of connotations depending on viewpoint. In the purest sense, it is reserved for people holding recognized accreditations or certifications for having achieved (or maintaining) a specified standard of genealogical research excellence. In another sense it can simply mean a fee-based research service. Often, the cost of these services vary accordingly. Potential clients should review the description of a service, and ask the service provider about their credentials when there is cause for concern.

genealogyPro's Acceptable Use Policy stipulates that advertisers, "represent themselves and the nature of their services in an honest and forthright manner". Failure to do so could result in removal of the advertisement. In business on the Internet since May 1996, there is little question that the vast majority of professional genealogists advertising with genealogyPro do just that. Less than 1% of services advertised with genealogyPro during that time have had a problem with a client that was brought to our attention. And of those, most all were resolved to the satisfaction of both professional and client.

As a final option for checking out a specific service, genealogyPro offers a Service Advisory Report. It tells you whether or not a complaint was received about a particular service and whether it was resolved.

John Holwell is the proprietor of genealogyPro. You can provide feedback on this article by emailing him at

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