YOU Should Start a Drone Business Now - Here's Why!

Russ, I’m a newly retired architect, also Part 107 for 4 1/2 years, and a former board member of one of the local Economic Development Boards. What you stated about contacting the local officials is exactly what I’m in the process of doing. The one item, I believe is the Most Important, but you did not mention, is the absolute necessity of obtaining Liability Insurance, prior to the very first business flight. Starting out, policies can be on a per project basis, hourly fee of approx $25, or on a monthly fee of $100. I’m sure your aware of several insurance companies that offer drone policies. I highly recommend insurance to anyone interested in starting a drone business; not only a necessity, but marketing your firm as having insurance s also very helpful in establishing your credibility.

Hey, you made a video about the same topic around a year ago. Back then, I started my drone business because of you. I am 14 years old and earned $3000+ last year just from drone photography and videography. Thanks for inspiring me!

Speaking of niches: I'm currently working on building a drone business around taking pictures of boats/yachts for their owners. I take the pics and have them printed on canvas so the owners can always admire their boat, even outside of the season. Worked with some sailing clubs so far and there seems to be a lot of interest :).

Russ, I just wanted to add that I recently got hired on by a company that does home inspections from wind or storm damage. I go and take photos of the house with my phone and then take aerials of the roof. Literally, everything uploads to an app, and that's it. The site is finished and uploaded before I leave the clients home. I have been geting 1-3 inspections a week. That's good side business for me and my family.

In Germany, farmers are obliged to search their fields for deer kitzen before mowing. This is now often done with drones and infrared cameras.

The trick is networking. As cliche as it is, it’s what works. I’m 16 and have worked with companies like Hyundai, Magazine corporations, ESPN, SEO Level Up and more. It all started by getting to know people. Great video! Biggest thing to take away is don’t give work away free. It will come back to bite you later.

I passed my exam from tony and Chelsea’s free study guide they posted. It’s an hour long video and only tells you what you need to pass. I l just listened 10–15 times while I was driving or working and I was able to pass with a 70. No practice test and they explained the trick questions very well.

Last year I visited a friend of mine who owns his old family hotel/restaurant. I flew a few minutes and gave him some photos and videos, just between friends. They now have one of my photos on the back of their catalog. But what I want to mention here is, that my wife looked at the videos and noticed, that one of their photovoltaic cells on the roof looked off. I showed him and said, I have no idea why this is. A few weeks later he called me, telling me I should do this for a living. He told his service guy, they checked the cells and the one in question was in fact broken and needed to be replaced. Without me he never would have known. So maybe also contact people who have PV systems on their property and offer inspection flights :)

We've made great money flying our drones as part of our video company. Get out there and practice and build a business

Russ, another great video. Your approach and delivery on all things important to Drone operators is always spot on. Thanks for another really informative video. Great job!

Russ, thank you for this excellent video about starting a drone business. You covered a lot of great information in this short video. I did add a comment regarding insurance for any new business. Yes, a website is an inexpensive way to start a business and post a gallery of your photos and videos. Your new business adventure of selling postcards is outstanding. I wish you much success! Well Done, Russ!

Dude! This was the message I needed to hear to make the leap. Now time to study for that test. Thank you!

Thank you for this video! I was scheduled to take my Part 107 Exam as I watched this video and your suggestion to enroll in Drone Pilot Ground School saved me! I had been through the FAA provided study guide for the exam and thought I was ready to test but after seeing this video your suggestion to enroll in a study course convinced me otherwise. It was Memorial Day weekend and I was able to take advantage of their discounted enrollment offer too. I was about 3 or 4 modules into the course and could easily see at this point I would have bombed the test without this additional preparation so once again thank you for this advice! By the way I just received my Temporary Airman Certificate....woohoo!

Russ! Great information! I love the fact that you encourage others to take the next step. I live along Lake Michigan and I think about all the watercraft in the harbors. Who wouldn’t want a nice image or video of their boat from a different viewpoint. My background in photography goes back to the film days and now my Mini3Pro will take me to new heights (pun intended). I’m a few years from retirement and looking for a new adventure. Thanks for the channel and all the great content it brings.

Writing off costs means nothing if you’re not making any revenue from your drone business! Keep that in mind.

Russ, thanks for the encouragement. I have my Part 107, three drones, a portfolio on Instagram, business cards, and what I think are some pretty decent photo and video chops. I've done a few sparse jobs here and there, but really need to get out and beat the pavement, as you say. Thanks for the nudge. I love your channel.

Thank you, I am very happy to save some money. Your announcement of the discount has expedited my plans to sign up for this UAV Part 107 education and training . I appreciate you bringing it to my attention. Best Regards

Russ, You have some great thoughts and words of encouragement for the newer people in the drone industry. I have my 107 and a couple of drones but am so busy with work I haven’t put the effort into building the business. Thanks for given the incentive I needed to get back in the right mindset. As a side note: A few years back when the Baaken Shale play started booming, I would come to North Dakota to work in the oil fields. I love the Scandinavian Heritage Center and Magic City. The winters were brutal on this Texan. I wish I had a drone back then. I would have loved to document the activity of the “Oil Boom,” just like the old spindle top days. No one can believe what all was going on.|

Always such value from your channel, my friend!!

Thanks for the great content Russ. I've had my part 107 for about 3 years now and am always toying with the idea of making some side $$$. You've definitely given me some ideas and a reason to knock the dust off my Mavic 3 classic. Love your positive attitude and keep em coming!