So you’re thinking about starting a drone business in a new market? Great! The UAV industry provides thousands of opportunities for people to make a living from drones. When it comes to understanding the drone market, maps are your best friend. Maps are visual representations of data and gathering information; they help increase your awareness and decision-making capabilities.
For example, a map can show you the locations of businesses relevant to your industry by outlining their latitude and longitude coordinates.
I recently got asked a question about how to start a drone business in two specific markets. I thought that was an interesting question. So I turned it into a blog post, and here it is.
When you are starting a business in a new market, it’s important to understand how to get your product into the hands of customers. This is especially true if you are selling drones.
One of the best ways to do this is to attend events that are relevant to your products. You can also use these events as opportunities to meet potential clients, partners and investors.
Many drone businesses rely on word-of-mouth advertising to get their name out there. If you have a great product, then people will be willing to share their experiences with others in order to help promote your business.
You’ve got the drone, you’ve got the camera, you’ve got the skills and knowledge. You’re ready to take flight, but where do you start?
How To Start A Drone Business In A New Market
It’s not enough to just have a drone and a camera — you need a plan. And that plan starts with answering these questions:
What are your goals? What kind of business will you be? How much money do you want to make? What kind of business structure should you use? Where should you start? How much will it cost?
If your goal is simply just to make money, then there are many ways for doing so: You could get into aerial photography for real estate or other commercial purposes or even take pictures at weddings and bar mitzvahs (as long as they don’t mind). But if it’s more than just about making cash, then it’s time to get strategic about how you want to run your business.
The first step is to enroll in an FAA-approved aeronautical training program to obtain a Remote Pilot Certificate, which is a requirement to be able to commercially operate a full-fledged drone business, before you decide to dive into the fascinating world of drones and the business opportunities ascribed with them. You can enrol in the Drone Pilot Ground School, which aids in the proper test preparation for the FAA Aeronautical Knowledge Test for aspiring drone pilots.
Additionally, UAV Coach provides U.S. Commercial Drone Pilots with a step-by-step reference to FAA Part 107 so they may pass the drone certification process and comply with all of the FAA’s new requirements. Read More.
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Opportunities for Drone Businesses
Drones offer a wide range of prospective business prospects. We’ve included a few of the ways people are entering the drone industry below.
A single-person aerial film unit (Filmmaking)
People can create in-house documentaries, short films, video clips, and montages that would otherwise require helicopters to shoot if they have a basic understanding of how to operate video cameras and fly drones. In addition, drones are more affordable, flexible, and secure than helicopters.
Drone photography for weddings and other events is a viable business option for both small and large businesses. The best way to launch a freelancing career in commercial photography and videography is to own a drone. This might become your main or secondary source of income.
Business of drone photography
One of the main segments of the drone services market is aerial photography. Many industries use aerial photography to gather digital data. For data collecting, asset management, and aerial mapping, the architectural, oil & gas, and civil engineering sectors, respectively, rely on drone photography.
Drones used in agriculture
UAVs can be used by farmers to identify weeds, monitor crop health, and identify pests and blights. Action of drones
Since drones can reach specialized areas faster than humans can, farmers can lower the variable cost of having their farms manually inspected. In addition to identifying pests and diseases, weeds, and crop health, farmers can employ UAVs for agricultural applications including fertilizer, insecticides, and water distribution.
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Business of mapping and industrial inspection
Areas and things that would normally take a ground survey crew several days to cover can be quickly surveyed and quantified with drones using a geo-referenced map. Potential clients for a drone inspection firm include architects, owners of construction sites, mining engineers, experts in shipping and infrastructure, and more.
Repair services for drones
There is a corresponding need for maintenance and repair work across the majority of emerging industries. A reputable drone repair firm will never be short of work given the growing use of drones around the world and the accompanying likelihood of military and civilian drone disasters.
Repairing drones may not sound like the most innovative business venture in the industry, but adopting 3D printing to minimize costs could be a wonderful way to undercut the competition and develop swiftly in this particular niche.
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Business that offers professional drone training
More tech enthusiasts can gain from the knowledge of expert pilots, drone tech gurus, and creators as interest in drone uses and operations grows. Theoretical and practical sessions are typically included in drone flying training. The fundamental movements and secure operation of drones for taking images or recording video can be taught to students. Authorized instructors may also issue licenses and certifications to students as a component of the program.
Delivery to small businesses
Drones can deliver common goods and carry out petty tasks that can cut down on operating costs. Uber
Small businesses can gain a lot from drones if they follow local laws and regulations. Drones can deliver consumables, goods for repairs, commodities, and carry out little tasks, which can significantly reduce operating expenses for small firms. Many businesses all over the world can improve their bottom lines by doing away with middlemen and labor for routine tasks (such deliveries and pick-ups).
Business of Drone Marketing and Advertising
Another unique use of drones is for data mining and information gathering by businesses. One of the biggest players in retail, Walmart, is testing drones to see if they can help with warehouse inventory management.
Wide Drone Walmart
Walmart is experimenting with the use of drones to enhance warehouse inventory control. Intelligence in BI
The unmatched data collection capacities of drones, supported by cloud services and big-data approaches, have the potential to drastically alter the competitive dynamics of the information landscape.
In addition, drones can be utilized for marketing efforts to carry banner ads and record overhead video, giving businesses the most exposure possible.
Drone Real Estate Business
A growing application for drone technology is in the real estate sector. Customers interested in real estate can create video tours using drones. Drones provide buyers a more immersive experience than conventional real estate photography by soaring through hallways and across rooftops.
In addition to the aforementioned, the following drone business ideas are worth investigating:
- Commercial inspection services are offered, including inspections of solar panels, wind turbines, electricity lines, pipelines, and even cell and TV towers.
- Fast food delivery: In the future, major corporations like Domino’s Pizza plan to invest in drones to deliver pizza.
- Drone-based package delivery is already being considered by Australia Post and Amazon as a viable option.
- Residential home inspections: Look for exterior damage to the roof, chimneys, siding, brick, and other structures.
- Drone Delivery Methods: Create a delivery method, such as a drop, parachute, lift, or landing, to address the “final 50 feet challenge.”
Software programming/applications:
If you are aware of a specific need in the drone industry, consider investing in the development of a solution.
Drone rentals
Because drone technology is developing so quickly, a firm may not always be wise to make a long-term commitment. Drones can be more flexible where it’s needed if they are rented rather than purchased.
Conclusion
Running a business is no easy task under the best of circumstances, but it becomes an even more complex problem when you have to do it in a new market. There are always going to be questions in the back of your mind about whether you’re doing things right, whether you’re making good decisions and so on.
This can be a particularly big problem when you’re first starting out, because you probably have plenty of other concerns that need your attention — gaining new clients and meeting their needs, for example. At some point (if not immediately), your attention will turn toward the question of how to start a drone business in a new market. To answer that question, we’ve drawn on our experience to provide nine pieces of essential advice.
Ultimately, your success will be based on how well you heed these words of wisdom.
