Questions about getting started doing commercial work

[ScottyV]

Thanks all for the great responses and suggestions regarding music, filming techniques, etc.

If you have time, I had some questions about insurance and LLCs/Business license:
1) If you're basically a "freelance" drone operator (a single individual taking real estate photos/video, video of events, etc, inspections) do you need/want to get a business license or form an LLC?
I don't know a lot about LLCs or how hard they are to form, but I have heard they are good to seperate liability between the business and personal assets in case anyone sues you.
Not sure if this would apply for a freelance drone operator vs a business with multiple employees and drones...

Also, any insight into Liablity Insurance? I've also heard that if you have renter's/homeowner's insurance the liability on that policy would cover a potential liability incident with the drone.

These are a couple companies that I've pulled from threads on this site, any input or thoughts?
World Wide Drone Ins (Loyds of London)
Global Aerospace
Verify (Google Store, pay as you go)
Veracity
Progressive

Thanks again for all the help.

 

[Classic flyer]

Thanks all for the great responses and suggestions regarding music, filming techniques, etc.

If you have time, I had some questions about insurance and LLCs/Business license:
1) If you're basically a "freelance" drone operator (a single individual taking real estate photos/video, video of events, etc, inspections) do you need/want to get a business license or form an LLC?
I don't know a lot about LLCs or how hard they are to form, but I have heard they are good to seperate liability between the business and personal assets in case anyone sues you.
Not sure if this would apply for a freelance drone operator vs a business with multiple employees and drones...

Also, any insight into Liablity Insurance? I've also heard that if you have renter's/homeowner's insurance the liability on that policy would cover a potential liability incident with the drone.

These are a couple companies that I've pulled from threads on this site, any input or thoughts?
World Wide Drone Ins (Loyds of London)
Global Aerospace
Verify (Google Store, pay as you go)
Veracity
Progressive

Thanks again for all the help.

I suggest you talk with several different insurance companies...explain your intentions and get yourself honest truthful information and not rely on hear say...they won't charge you for information...as for a business license I would think that not only would your city, county, or state require it( they need to make$ as well) but it would show perspective customers that you are legit...good luck and remember, if it's worth having/doing it's going to take an effort on your part

 

[seowashdc]

I can only echo what's written here. I am also just outside DC, and I'm networking with a few realtors I have good relationships with. Start with people you know and do a few free projects to build your portfolio. Realize you'll need to upgrade your equipment, probably sooner than later.

It took me a good three years to get my SEO training and consulting business off the ground. Back then, I started from scratch. Now that I know how to start a business, I realize it really just takes time to gain momentum. Don't give up. Hell, if going into business was easy, everyone would be doing it.

 

[dewster]

I think amateur and professional photographers are including drones in their equipment list. Its probably harder to just depend on aerial work.

Some people just don’t realize the benefit of an aerial view.

You can do free advertising on Google Maps. Get your 107. Visit places that don’t have crazy flight restrictions and or obtain permission to take aerial photos of tourist sites, popular areas, wedding venues wineries etc. Posting on Google maps with embedded contact information is a great way to advertise.

Make contact with realtors. Offer free jobs to get your name out there.

Local police and fire departments could use your service if you market it right. Your license, with gear may give you an advantage right now. Emergency services are training their personnel for the 107 and purchasing drones. Take advantage now before they catch up.

Probably most important is having a understanding of photography, composition, editing etc. Think about how you will deliver your product: Polished or raw.

Set up a simple website of your aerial work.

Bottom line: I think you can make money. My coworker made $700 with his Mavic taking pictures of a Winery.

 

[seowashdc]

Don't forget to harness the power of social media. One of the best, no cost ways you can generate interest is by really beefing up your LinkedIn profile. Use the keywords you want to get found for in your profile title and description. Do outreach in your network - make it as simple as asking if anyone knows a business that could benefit from drone footage. Start small, start cheap.

Set up a YouTube Channel and post your best samples, one at a time.

 

[Classic flyer]

Don't forget to harness the power of social media. One of the best, no cost ways you can generate interest is by really beefing up your LinkedIn profile. Use the keywords you want to get found for in your profile title and description. Do outreach in your network - make it as simple as asking if anyone knows a business that could benefit from drone footage. Start small, start cheap.

Set up a YouTube Channel and post your best samples, one at a time.

Awsome advice...you come across as being very professional...be safe fly safe

 

[seowashdc]

Classic Flyer, thanks! I spent my entire federal government career in aviation safety/security, so it comes before anything else. 'Tis better to sit something out vs. flying into a goat rodeo of epic and legendary proportions.

 

[Classic flyer]

Classic Flyer, thanks! I spent my entire federal government career in aviation safety/security, so it comes before anything else. 'Tis better to sit something out vs. flying into a goat rodeo of epic and legendary proportions.

I as well spent 36 yrs as a Federal employee in the aviation sector and retired last Aug...now I fly for my own pleasure

 

[seowashdc]

FAA or TSA? I was both.

 

[Classic flyer]

FAA or TSA? I was both.

DOD...civilian

 

[seowashdc]

Awesome!

 

[AClineman]

Also don’t limit yourself you real estate shooting and think outside the box.
I work for the power company and they pay for a helicopter pilot and one of our inspectors to physically fly remote powerlines that are not truck accessible (across swamps, marshlands, wooded areas ,,,etc. No mountains here in this coastal part of the state but you could do that too)
If a line locks out and is de-energized or still Hot they need to find the problem (downed conductor, cracked insulator, etc)

We are also starting to use a drone inspection service which IMO would save the company a ton of money VS an actually copter and pilot.
Cell Tower inspections, building inspections and other things that are remote or very high may be an avenue of revenue to also pursue.

We sent crews to Puerto Rico for storm restoration efforts and there were some very remote locations valleys with heavy vegetation that the powerline spanned a crossed.
After new poles were set they had the task of getting ropes pulled in from pole to pole in order to pull in the new wires.
Instead of the time consuming task of clearing the right of way to manually march the ropes in from pole to pole they used a Mavic Pro !!
One of our safety guys took his MP with him. They tied about a 3’ of line to the MP with a small fishing dipsy to it so it hung down and away from the drone. To the dipsy they tied a smallish jet line (basically string) and flew it from high ground about a 1000 feet away over the downed trees and valley to a crew on the other side. Once there the guys cut the string and used it to pull back ropes and eventually the new conductors.
I got to see the video. Very cool.

Anyway good luck and just wanted to share in case you want to think of ways other then simply doing an Ariel photoshoot for a real estate agent. Plus you don’t need epic photography skills to get the inspections done.

Oh and if you starting a company LLC or whatever don’t forget to write off your drone and all other expenses come tax time.

 

[seowashdc]

Great point. Think of different industries. Here on the Chesapeake Bay, marinas love aerial views, but hiring a light sport or private pilot is too expensive, and they have to stay at 1100' here locally. Think about how cool it is to get a lower aerial perspective, assuming you are near a body of water with marina facilities.

Someone here mentioned a winery...that's got me thinking!

Weddings are popular gigs.

Also, think about roof inspections for commercial buildings.

There are a lot of ways to break in...this is a great brainstorming thread.

 

[AClineman]

Ok while we’re at it when fishing big offshore tournaments there is usually a helicopter hanging at the inlet with a photographer hanging out the door snapping pictures of the beautiful sportfishing rigs running and spray flying. What owner wouldn’t love an ariel photo of his million dollar rig running offshore?
At the end of the day usually at the banquet the photographer is there with all the rigs he captured on display and for sale.

 

[seowashdc]

Good point, and now that I think about it, the Chesapeake Bay fishing tournaments might be something as well.

 

[AClineman]

If you have a Raymarine Axiom you wouldn’t need a photographer. This stuff is WAY cool !!!

Drone Fishing with Raymarine from Your Boat | FishTalk Magazine

 

[kodiak1120]

I've been doing commercial work part time for about two years now. I don't make a ton of money, but I've made a few thousand in extra income. I've done real estate listings and two larger commercial projects. I also uploaded a video I took of the Statute of Liberty to YouTube and I've made money off of licensing out various segments. I was actually paid $1,500 for a seven second clip of the fly over. It was for a production company out in California that was going to use it for a music video for a very well known band. Unfortunately, they decided not to release the video, so my 15 seconds of fame never happened, but at least I got paid.

The way I see it is, it's relatively easy to make side money flying a drone, but it would be very difficult to make "real" money. I enjoy flying and I like the artistic expression I get framing shots, processing the photos and presenting a finished product. I charge $150 for residential real estate photos, plus mileage and tolls. At that rate, I probably put about three hours of work into each project between travel time, flying time and post-processing. $50 per hour before tax and overhead isn't great, but it's good for side money. At that rate though, I don't do anything except stills. If they want video or video editing, the price goes up a lot. Video editing will take you HOURS to get right, so make sure your rate is sufficient.

I tried advertising with Google Adwords and I get zero jobs. I used a $150 credit though, so I didn't cost me anything. All of my work has come through word-of-mouth referrals. I got hooked up with a photographer that does interior residential real estate photography. He has a drone and used to drone shots too, but stopped when they made the Part 107 requirement. At that point, someone gave him my name and he sends me all his requests from his realtor friends.

Here's a link to my Statue of Liberty video if you're interested:

To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.

Accept third party cookies

Good luck.

 

[seowashdc]

You make an excellent point about doing this full time. For anyone who's serious, their full time job for awhile is going to be business development. Thanks for sharing your price points. Others' mileage will vary, depending upon where they're located. I agree with you about the video post-production effort. You'd have to charge four figures to make it worth your while, and unless you're in harness with agents who routinely book a million or more in sales, most agents probably can't pass this onto the client.

Google Adwords is pretty much useless. The only entity that benefits is Google. Anyone is absolutely better off doing face to face networking and possibly come cold calling. I urge people who are just starting out to invest sweat equity and keep every dollar back for the really important things.

For a new drone pilot business owner, I'd stick to local commuting area as much as possible, do a few pro bono jobs to build a portfolio, be price competitive at the start and work her way from there.

Thanks so much for sharing!

 

[seowashdc]

On a sort of related note, members here may be interested in joining the FAA Drone Waiver Group on Facebook. The agency holds webinars on the entire process regularly. You just register for free at the link FAA provides, and you dial in at the appointed time.

Log into Facebook | Facebook

I have no idea why the anchor text is listed like it is above, but the URL is the FAA facebook page.

 

[ScottyV]

Thanks everyone for the great suggestions and information. There's lots of good stuff here to take in!