Genealogy Opportunities 2015: How to Make Money in the Genealogy Business;

In 2011, 2012, and 2013, I produced a weeklong series of blog articles related to the business side of genealogy called GeneaOpportunities. The series attracted quite a bit of attention and in 2015 I decided to revive the series at the GenBiz Solutions website.

Here are the topics covered in Genealogy Opportunities 2015:

•Genealogy – For Fun or Profit? A focus on the different types of genealogy businesses and how you can start your own genealogy business.

•Careers in Genealogy. A look at “traditional” and “unorthodox” genealogy careers with a focus on some genealogists who are thinking “outside the genealogy box,” to carve out their own career paths.

•What Do You Mean Genealogy Isn’t Free? While the perception is that everything should be “free” when it comes to genealogy, in the past three years we have seen phenomenal progress in the willingness of consumers to pay for quality goods and services for genealogists and family historians.

•How Do You Make Money in Genealogy? Most of my colleagues and followers have heard me talk about the “abundance model” I have embraced not just for my genealogy business, but also in life. I share many numbers related to the first half of 2015: hours worked, revenue, expenses, income and what it all means. I also try to share the secrets to my success: be nice, be abundant, and be open.

•Money Changes Everything – Or Does It? A recap of the topics and I share my insights on what I have learned so far in 2015.

And so here we are in 2015 and, despite some negative feedback from the genealogy community, I continue to let my own compass guide me. What has happened since the last posting of the Genealogy Opportunities series in 2013? Here is what I have accomplished and I will be sharing some of the secrets of my success:

•Forbes magazine published an article about my business journey in October 2012: Career Shift: Turn Your Hobby Into a New Job.

•I took on several new consulting clients, mostly startups in the genealogy field including ReelGenie and Saving Memories Forever.

•I launched the Legacy Quick Guide series at Legacy Family Tree, and then expanded the series out to Amazon Kindle.

•The number of speaking engagements, both in-person and virtual (webinar) increased to almost 100 lectures per year and continues at that rate. I currently have speaking gigs booked out to mid-2017.

•I launched a genealogy tech site, Hack Genealogy, to provide the latest technology news to the genealogy community.

•In late 2013, the Hack Genealogy Boot Camp concept – a series of intensive, half-day long genealogy webinars – launched. Since then there have been over 1,000 attendees of the live sessions and sales of digital downloads totalling over $11,000.

•I helped create GenBiz Solutions in 2014 to assist other genealogy solopreneurs in launching their own businesses.

•In mid-2014, I finally discovered the secret formula to affiliate income that has brought in over 60% of my business revenue so far in 2015.

•Finally, in early 2015, I launched The Genealogy Do-Over as a combination education/marketing channel.

Over the past three years, I have learned quite a bit and I have fine-tuned my business. I know what I like to do and what makes me feel “whole” as a person and as a business owner. I now have the freedom of not taking on certain types of work whereas three years ago I had to do these gigs and muddle through. I am also still willing to try new things and incorporate them into my business even though they have never been attempted in the genealogy industry.

I hope you find the information in Genealogy Opportunities 2015 useful and it inspires you to start your own genealogy business!