How to Create an Adoptive Family Profile

How to Create an Adoptive Family Profile

As a prospective adoptive family, you know that a key part of your adoption process is finding a prospective birth mother. However, finding the right adoption opportunity can seem like an overwhelming task. So, how can you help ensure that a prospective birth mother chooses you?

While the decision is ultimately up to the pregnant woman considering adoption, there is an important role you can play in the process: creating an adoptive family profile. This profile is a great opportunity for you to show what kind of parents you’ll be, what an adopted child’s life will be like with your family and why a prospective birth mother should choose you.

When you work with Bryan McLachlan for your adoption, you’ll also receive the benefits of a full-service adoption agency. If you need help finding a prospective birth mother to adopt from, Bryan’s partners at American Adoptions can help you create the perfect adoptive family profile. Their team of experienced media specialists will not only give you the tools for making a print family profile, but they’ll help you go the extra step by making a family video profile as well.

For more information on how to make an adoption profile book with Bryan McLachlan and American Adoptions, learn about the steps you’ll go through here.

1. First, you’ll need to understand what an adoptive family profile looks like.

Before you begin creating your own adoptive family profile, you’ll want to look at adoption profile book examples. You can view some online here.

In general, adoptive family profiles will include photos and written content that detail who you are, what your lifestyle is like, why you would be good adoptive parents and more. Some things you can expect to include are descriptions of:

  • Your day-to-day lifestyle
  • Information about your relationship (if married) and why you chose to pursue adoption
  • Your house and community
  • Your extended family and any traditions you might have
  • Anything additional that makes your family unique

It’s recommended you look through adoption profile book ideas and examples to get a better idea of what an adoptive family profile looks like. However, it’s also important to remember that there is no one way to create a “perfect” adoptive family profile. Don’t try to model your profile off someone else’s — only you can truly represent your family.

2. Begin making your adoptive family print profile.

Once you are familiar with what an adoptive family profile looks like, you can get started with your own profile. If you work with American Adoptions or another family profile service, you will be provided with a “profile kit,” which will list all of the kinds of photos and written content you’ll need to provide their media specialists. It may seem like an overwhelming amount of information, but the more you can provide to the media specialists, the more they can choose from to create the most attractive profile possible.

When you start working on your profile content, you may be confused about how to write an adoption profile: How much information should you include? What should you say to the potential birth mother? How do you come across respectfully without seeming too eager and scaring her off?

The good news is that you can never seem too eager to a prospective birth mother. She wants to see your commitment to your adoption choice and know that you are 100 percent ready to raise an adopted child.

Some tips when writing your profile content and selecting photos:

  • Be honest. Don’t be formal or try to represent yourself as something you’re not; a prospective birth mother can pick up on that right away. Choose photos of you in your day-to-day clothes and activities, and don’t be afraid to share your feelings on adoption and how much it means to you in your letter to the prospective birth mother.
  • Don’t assume she has made her choice. Because a prospective birth mother has parental rights for her child until she gives her consent to the adoption, avoid terminology like “our baby.” The baby is still hers, so thank her for considering adoption (rather than choosing adoption) at this point in her pregnancy.
  • Be descriptive. This is usually the first impression a prospective birth mother will have of you, so make sure that you give her as much detail as possible about your life. The more information she has, the more likely she can visualize her child growing up with you.

Don’t be afraid of oversharing; your profile specialist can omit details they think will be too much for a prospective birth mother.

3. Begin filming your adoptive family video profile.

One of the benefits of working with Bryan McLachlan is the ability to create an adoptive family video profile as well. This takes your first impression to the next level, as prospective birth mothers will be able to easily visualize who you are, what your personalities are like, how you interact with each other and the life her child might grow up in.

Media specialists at American Adoptions will send you an easy-to-use video kit with cameras and instructions on what to film. Like with your print profile materials, more film gives specialists more choices when editing your adoptive family profile video.

4. Send your materials to American Adoptions.

The media specialists will take it from here — they’ll handle your adoption profile design and video editing. You will have the chance to view their final proofs and make edits before the profiles are finalized and shown to prospective birth mothers.

5. Wait for a match and update your profile (if needed).

Once your profile is complete, it can be shown to prospective birth mothers. This waiting period can be the most nerve-racking part of your adoption, but know that the perfect match will eventually happen. In the meantime, try to stay busy with your everyday life and, if anything in your profile changes (your job, your house, etc.), make sure you contact the media specialists right away to update your profile.

Wondering how to make an adoption profile book can make you nervous, but it shouldn’t. You should view this process as a great opportunity to discover what makes your family unique and to share that with prospective birth mothers. Don’t overthink it; there’s no “perfect” way to make an adoptive family profile, and your adoption professionals will be there to help every step of the way, even showing you as many examples of adoption profile books as needed.

To begin your adoption process today, or to learn more about what services Bryan can offer prospective adoptive families, please call 727-398-0086 or contact him online.