Drone work

[Bo Beck]

Well guys, I passed my 107 small UAS test today with a 90%. I am ready to get to work. How much should I charge for my service for tower inspections, events like weddings, real estate, etc. Your advise would be important to me.
Thanks,
Bo

 

[CactusJackSlade]

There are many threads on this...

There is no set rate. I would advise to look around your local area and get "quotes" for what others charge. Personally I don't even start my motors for under $200 for the first hours work, and that's only if it is within a few minutes of home, then usually $125 - $195 per hour. I give 5 miles free travel each way, then charge per mile after that. For construction work I charge a bit heavier up front, then less as the project proceeds, but I still have a minimum per shoot.

Towers are more difficult. Potential wind aloft and RF interference is possible (although I've never personally had an issue). I'm not sure what rig you plan to buy but the Mavic Zoom might be a good choice for that just so you can get up close and personal. Also, a radiometric thermal camera might be required/requested by any client doing tower work. Also, keep in mind DJI has us limited to 500 meters (1640 ft) and there are a lot of towers that you could get paid big bucks for.... IF you could reach the top. We have a few towers here that are over 2,000 ft AGL.

Weddings, be very careful, do a YouTube search on drone videos during a wedding that went bad. That being said I have done a couple.. just never EVER fly above anyone.

Real Estate?... Very tough. Unless you are in a unique area, every outgoing real estate agent either already has a drone, someone in the office has a drone or knows a friend with a drone.... and they all work very cheap. This is where I got my start almost 15 years ago (fixed wing R/C) and it slowly but surely died out as more and more agents had easy access to a drone pilot willing to work for almost nothing. and my time is worth more than what some will do for an agent.

Get good commercial insurance. Always have a spotter.

Cheers

 

[CactusJackSlade]

BTW, 90% is great. I got 93% or something on my first one, but only 83 or something percent on my 2 year re-exam... The second time around was definitely harder, and they actually had just changed a rule and I was actually right on one question I got dinged on.

 

[BigAl07]

Congrats on passing.

You might get better (or at least more) answers by joining and searching this forum:

Search results for query: charge

commercialdronepilots.com

Also each market can be drastically different than the next one so rates in the next county over may be ridiculous in your county. You need to know your market, your product offerings, and your COMPETITION very well before even considering a business.

I'd highly suggest taking the time to thoroughly develop and in-depth Business Plan before spending $1 or ordering your first business supplies. The process of creating the Business Plan will teach you about your market, your industry, your competition, help you create an intelligent price scheme, and help you develop your Marketing Plan. A well designed Business Plan can save you a LOT of $$ and stress during a startup.

 

[THE CYBORG]

These days it’s important to have a good logo & website as a showcase of your video’s for different scenarios.
Don't take this the wrong way but price all depends on the quality of your work, stills photographers usually specialise in one area- portraits, weddings or landscapes, some charge a small fortune but they are well-known, the hard part is getting your name out there associated with an excellent portfolio.
You have to look better than the rest & there are a lot to best.

 

[A.O.]

There are many threads on this...

There is no set rate. I would advise to look around your local area and get "quotes" for what others charge. Personally I don't even start my motors for under $200 for the first hours work, and that's only if it is within a few minutes of home, then usually $125 - $195 per hour. I give 5 miles free travel each way, then charge per mile after that. For construction work I charge a bit heavier up front, then less as the project proceeds, but I still have a minimum per shoot.

Towers are more difficult. Potential wind aloft and RF interference is possible (although I've never personally had an issue). I'm not sure what rig you plan to buy but the Mavic Zoom might be a good choice for that just so you can get up close and personal. Also, a radiometric thermal camera might be required/requested by any client doing tower work. Also, keep in mind DJI has us limited to 500 meters (1640 ft) and there are a lot of towers that you could get paid big bucks for.... IF you could reach the top. We have a few towers here that are over 2,000 ft AGL.

Weddings, be very careful, do a YouTube search on drone videos during a wedding that went bad. That being said I have done a couple.. just never EVER fly above anyone.

Real Estate?... Very tough. Unless you are in a unique area, every outgoing real estate agent either already has a drone, someone in the office has a drone or knows a friend with a drone.... and they all work very cheap. This is where I got my start almost 15 years ago (fixed wing R/C) and it slowly but surely died out as more and more agents had easy access to a drone pilot willing to work for almost nothing. and my time is worth more than what some will do for an agent.

Get good commercial insurance. Always have a spotter.

Cheers

Just out of curiosity, I was in construction most of my life and never once saw a drone on site. What kind of construction and what are you looking for?

 

[BigAl07]

Just out of curiosity, I was in construction most of my life and never once saw a drone on site. What kind of construction and what are you looking for?

I can't speak for CJS but I am fortunate to do a lot of Construction Progress Tracking (we don' do volume calcs etc). We do bi-weekly or monthly site visits documenting current work bein done, inventory conditions, Entrance/Exit conditions, and a myriad of other offerings for each client. It helps that I work in the Construction Industry already and have decades of Commercial and Residential Construction experience already under my belt.

In 2018 our Aerials depicted (by just luck and a coincidence) an unknown problem with a "wet weather spring" that popped up in a very far corner of a building site for a big national grocery chain. From our images they were able to see something that wasn't readily visible from the ground which started a huge investigation and ultimately saved the Construction company weeks of repair work and who knows how much $$ was saved.

 

[itallica]

Welcome! lots of threads on this over at MavicPilots sister forum: Commercial Drone Pilots Forum

It's been very helpful, as has this forum.

 

[CactusJackSlade]

Just out of curiosity, I was in construction most of my life and never once saw a drone on site. What kind of construction and what are you looking for?

What Big Al 07 said, mainly construction progression. I've also done a few that documented storm damage and the like before they started construction.