#31 WBGB ~ Week 9 ~ Participate In An Online Genealogy Group




I am following Tonia's Roots as she brings several GeneaBloggers through 31 weeks of working towards a better blog prompts written by Darren Rowse. 
Tonia's blog states~
Welcome to Week 9 of 31 Weeks to a Better Genealogy Blog!
Our topic this week is participating in online genealogy groups.  These could be forums, mailing lists, message boards, facebook groups, etc.

Why Should We Participate in Online Genealogy Groups?

There are three main reasons to participate in online communities:
  1. Profile Building – if you put consistent time into an online group, you can build a significant profile in the genealogy community.  Keep in mind the “What’s In It For Me” perspective of the other group members.  If you are able to provide value in the form of information, advice, or support, you are more likely to develop fans among the other members.
  2. Driving Traffic — when you provide value and become a resource to others in the forum, they will want to know more about you and will be more likely to click over to your blog.
  3. Understanding the genealogy niche – Not only will you learn about the genealogy niche that the forum pertains to, but also you’ll get a lot of ideas for topics to write about on your blog.  Keep your eyes open for questions being asked repeatedly and then write posts to answer them.

Finding Online Groups

There are plenty of groups around that you could participate in.  Some categories include:
  • Groups related to being or becoming a professional genealogist
  • Surname or locality groups
  • Genealogy software groups
Take a look at Ancestry’s message boards, Genforum’s forums, RootsWeb mailing lists, and GenealogyWise groups.  Also search Facebook for “genealogy groups.”  And don’t forget about Google – a search for “Genealogy Forums” will turn up other possibilities.

Action Items

  1. Join an online genealogy group that is geared toward one of your interests.  If you are already a member of one or more groups, then:
  2. Spend 10-15 minutes participating.  Notice the bold font.  Don’t just lurk.  Get in there and join the conversation.
  3. Tell us about your experience in the comments section:  a) what group(s) did you join (or what groups are you already a member of)? b) did you come out of lurkdom in any groups this week?

I understand this concept, I really do. Hang with people who are like-minded... learn, share, listen, participate. I have belonged to groups such as this before. 


I recently "introduced myself" under the introduction section over at Genealogy Wise as part of the National Institute For Genealogical Studies Social Media Class. That reminded me that I hadn't been very active over there for some time. I have participated in the Sweden group several times, and appreciate the hep I received there. So, as I went over to participate on Genealogy Wise, I actually saw a group entitled "Doolin Surname" which includes many spellings of the name. My great grandmother's surname being "Dulin," I felt a strong desire to ask for permission to join this group. I have belonged to an online genealogy based group for several years. It was a fun and great group, we took genealogy courses together and stayed together I think it has been 5 years now. It isn't as active as it once was but several of us have gone on to "blog-land." I am looking forward to participating more on Genealogy Wise, and with those attending classes at the National Institute For Genealogical Studies.

Thanks for stopping by!

Wishing you success in all of your genealogical treasure hunts!







Copyright © 2011 By Cheryl Palmer All Rights Reserved

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Organizing ~ Cousins Found

Image
I finally took time yesterday to do something I have been wanting to do for awhile now. It has been several years since I started genealogy and blogging. Many cousins have been found. But, how many? Who? I have not kept any kind of system to log these cousin contacts. I was past due, do I even remember all of them? Well, that was the goal here. I started a spreadsheet of "Cousins Found." I titled columns with things like, phone number, address, email address, surname, how/where we made contact, and if I have met them. I am all about meeting my living cousins and their family members, it does my heart good, plus you never know how long they will be with us. Of course, they may also have information to help us in our genealogy research.   I started listing the cousins names I remembered making contact with, those were cousins I generally keep in contact with anyway, so that was easy. Then, sporadically, I would remember someone contacting me on one e-mail address w
Read more

#31 WBGB ~ Week 11 ~ Come Up with 10 Post Ideas

Image
I am following  Tonia's Roots  as she brings several GeneaBloggers through 31 weeks of working towards a better blog, prompts written by Darren Rowse.  Here is this weeks challenge adapted from Darren Rowse's daily challenges which Tonia is doing as weekly challenges: Ever run out of things to write about on your blog? If your answer is yes – you’re not alone. This weeks's task is to do an exercise that will identify a range of post ideas that you can use when stuck for an idea in future. The key with this process is not to put yourself under pressure to come up with completely new and out of the blue ideas for every post you write. Instead – this process taps into what you’ve recently written on your blog and helps you to identify ways to extend those ideas. Here’s the mind mapping method that I’ve used (note: I’ve talked about this previously so it could be familiar to some). 1. The Set Up Get a whiteboard, piece of paper, note book, tablet pc or someth
Read more

Sentimental Sunday ~ Western Union Telegram

Image
Do you remember telegrams? Western Union Telegrams were a bit before my time. I have scanned the few that were kept and received by my paternal family back in the day.  This telegram was sent to my grandmother from Obed Olson stating his brother Philip had passed away on Wednesday March 9, 1960. It also let the family know that the funeral services were to be on Saturday at 2:00pm at Coop Mortuary in Hibbing, Minnesota. The telegram was to be received by Friday (which would have been March 11) and the funeral with the funeral being the next day I highly doubt my grandparents made if from California to Minnesota for the funeral. Philip and Obed Olson were my first cousin once removed. Unfortunately, I never met either of them. Thanks for stopping by!  Wishing you success in all of your genealogical treasure hunts!  Copyright © 2011 Cheryl Palmer
Read more