Sharing your tree with your family with ease

JonathanELawrence

I have created a 7-generation family tree. I want to invoice my family and extended family to join and view my work, edit details, add, details, etc. I made a family group and invited people. The joined and I approved them. My issue is that my family joins the group but when they click tree it is blank. They cannot easily view what I am wanting to show them. Then I get text messages asking what this is, is it a spam scam, they don't see anything, and then they will close the website and not move forward. Seeing my work instantly will engage my family and get them interested in the project.

I also don't understand the not showing living people that I have added thing. The living people are the ones who I want to join this project with me and collaborate.

Alan E. Brown

When working with family group trees, it is very important to make sure that everyone involved is viewing the shared family group tree (FGT). Check with your family members to make sure that they have selected the FGT using the drop-down tree selector in the upper left corner of the page. If instead they are seeing "FamilySearch Tree" in that selector, that means they are looking at only their personal tree. For people new to FamilySearch, that is likely to be a blank tree. But if they choose the FGT, they will see the tree that you have created.

Note also that even when they select the FGT, what they see will be a tree beginning with them — it will not be from the same perspective that you see, since your tree begins with them. So it's important that in the FGT they have relationships established (most importantly their relationship to their parents and grandparents) so that they are connected to your common ancestors.

One final thing to check: you said that you "created a 7-generation family tree." It's important that you have the living persons in that tree in the shared FGT, not just in your personal "FamilySearch Tree". Hopefully you created that in the FGT or copied it to the FGT as you created the FGT.

AnneLoForteWillson

@JonathanELawrence Did you resolve this? Is your family now able to view your tree?

Just to be sure, you stated first that you built a 7-generation tree and then that you created a Family Group. If that is the order that you worked, then, as @Alan E. Brown suggested, did you copy the living people from your 7-generation tree into your Family Group Tree? Living people profiles that you create are only visible to others if they are created within a Family Group Tree. So, any living people profiles that you created in your FamilySearch Tree must be copied to a Family Group Tree in order for you to share information with your family members.

If you go to one of the living individuals that you would like to share with your family, and look in the upper-left-hand corner you will see what tree you are in. If you are in the FamilySearch Tree, those living individuals will not be visible to other family members.

You will need to Copy From FamilySearch Tree. To use this tool, go to your Group Details page, right-hand side in the Group and Tree Settings box:

You should also explain to your family members that they must click the link, request to join the Family Group and that YOU (or another administrator) must accept their request to join, before they will be able to see anything in the group.

If, however, you have correctly entered living individuals into your Family Group Tree and your family members after clicking the link and joining the group (have you accepted their requests to join?) Still cannot view the tree, please respond back here and we will investigate further.