The Paranormal Team Starter Checklist: Sharing Your Team

I don't know about others but when I am searching for a paranormal team, I really want to see comprehensive information about them. Whether you simply use your social media or you have a website there are a few things you should share so that others can get to know you.

Where are you located? When searching for a paranormal team, it is extremely important to include where you are located or your service area. Not everyone is willing to share their exact location in this day and age so a good compromise is to share the area of which you are willing to travel in or cover. Our team is located in Hagerstown, Maryland and we will do investigations up to an hour from Hagerstown. This mainly applies to private residences or locations where we are called in to do an investigation.

What is your mission? Not everyone has the same goals or even does the same things. We currently do not take new private residence cases on and we have a limited coverage area. It is nice to know whether the team you are researching is accepting cases, new members, have events or that they only do research in historic locations. When someone is looking for a team they may be looking for something specific and they look for that information, if it's not there they may move on to a team that is more transparent.

Who is on your team? It is important to remember that you cannot be too careful about who you are involved with. No client is going to want a team with an individual that is untrustworthy and I am sure you would rather have a team with well rounded honest people. Share your team. Who they are, their interests, their experience, and what they do for their 9-5. Getting to know the team prior to the investigation may be an important factor for clients and potential location representatives. 

Do you have a website? Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and other social media sites are great for getting information out there in a way that generates "followers" however there is a certain professional upgrade when you see that a team has a website. Websites can include team members, mission statements, coverage areas, past investigations, resources for others, equipment, and maybe reviews. Our website also has forms for applications, contacting us, and registrations for events. Having a resource like a website where it is easy to find information about your team, the paranormal, and more; may help more than just your clients.

What is your approach to paranormal investigation? Not everyone uses equipment and not everyone uses psychics. It is always helpful to know what approach you use so that when you are being referred a case or someone wants to contact you, they know you are a good fit. Not every client is going to be interested in every approach. Our website includes how we do our investigations, all the steps and stages. This comprehensive information has brought us many clients and members over the years because of our organized protocols. Share what equipment you use, your protocols, steps and stages of a case, and how you share your data.

How experienced are you? A person who started a year ago and continuously investigated in that year may be more experienced that someone that has done it for 20 years. It all depends on the level of your exposure to various paranormal cases. This is where it is great to see the various locations that someone has done. (NOTE: Lately we have not shared a lot of our locations due to individuals trespassing and making nuisances of themselves. Our team has character references for potential clients.)

Does your team have rules, bylaws, or safety measures?

Every good organization has-- organization. Whether it is a criteria for membership on the team, ethical guidelines for cases, confidentiality agreements, liability waivers, protocols for investigations, or a basic standard for how they approach every client; it can make all the difference of being chosen for investigations when others see how serious you take paranormal investigation. I know I harp on protocols and standards but if you have no standards you may be prone to having dramatic issues with clients and members. Clients want structure, organization, and efficiency; so create an organized protocol and share how you plan to do things.

There is so much you can share that can build you a good reputation and help expand your reach. Transparency on who you are is a great way to bring more people in who may just trust you with their paranormal case. There have been many people that have chosen our team specifically because of our website and how much information we share on Facebook. They like to see how organized we are with so much information. You'd be surprised how much it helps, just make sure that if you create protocols, uphold them.

Rebecca Boyer

Co-Founder/ Case Manager

Antietam Paranormal Society