In case you haven’t heard, RootsTech 2018 is changing the landscape for their popular Innovators program. This time, instead of a contest for cash prizes, it will be a Showcase to spotlight the best and brightest technology companies in family history. You can read more about it here.

So the first order of business is voting for the favorite, and this time the votes are cast by the public. (See “Voting” below for details on how to participate.)

This brings back an interesting memory! Let’s flash back to Feb. 2016, when I presented The Family History Guide at the RootsTech Innovator Showdown. We were vying to reach the finals round of the competition, and things were going along smoothly until the panel of judges asked me how The Family History Guide would make money. When I responded that we wanted to keep the site free of ads and fees, and that the main source of income would be through donations, that did not go over well – the Showdown competition needed to find a strong money-maker in the market. (The bright spot, however, was the fact that this presentation opened the doors to a continuing, working partnership with FamilySearch … not a bad prize at all!)

Now we flash forward to RootsTech 2018, where it will be a showcase instead of a showdown, and RootsTech will be looking for the companies that are changing the family history landscape. On that basis, it’s seems to be a brand new day …

Voting

So if you are a fan of The Family History Guide, now’s your chance to let your voice be heard. Visit the new Innovation web page on our site for quick instructions on how to vote. We’ll keep you in the loop on the latest happenings – thanks for your support!