Question about Drone Base

[Nitz]

Pricing is cheap because anyone and their brother can spend a few bucks to get into the industry. It is this way with any ‘new’ tech. The market doesn’t know what it means to be a ‘good’ pilot vs a great ‘pilot’.

I compare it to the photography world where everyone thinks they can buy a DSLR think they are a ‘professional’

The benefit we have is that soon the regulations will increase (whether we like it or not) requiring more insurance, more safety, and more experience which will begin to separate the weekenders from the professionals.

Aside from that if you want to do this professionally, stay away from markets that anyone can do (realty and photography). Find industries that need experience who can be professional and know their industry.

Additionally, which I find fascinating is the lack of people selling the data as a service. Data analytics is HUGE. The data we capture with UAS can keep an asset management team busy for weeks and engineers planning for months. Don’t sell your service as a photography service but a data collection, storage, and analysis.

Machine learning, AI, computer vision are the future of what we do. IMO the data from our services will be the seller - not the flight.

Sorry - went in a tangent.

 

[R.Perry]

Pricing is cheap because anyone and their brother can spend a few bucks to get into the industry. It is this way with any ‘new’ tech. The market doesn’t know what it means to be a ‘good’ pilot vs a great ‘pilot’.

I compare it to the photography world where everyone thinks they can buy a DSLR think they are a ‘professional’

The benefit we have is that soon the regulations will increase (whether we like it or not) requiring more insurance, more safety, and more experience which will begin to separate the weekenders from the professionals.

Aside from that if you want to do this professionally, stay away from markets that anyone can do (realty and photography). Find industries that need experience who can be professional and know their industry.

Additionally, which I find fascinating is the lack of people selling the data as a service. Data analytics is HUGE. The data we capture with UAS can keep an asset management team busy for weeks and engineers planning for months. Don’t sell your service as a photography service but a data collection, storage, and analysis.

Machine learning, AI, computer vision are the future of what we do. IMO the data from our services will be the seller - not the flight.

Sorry - went in a tangent.

That is great advice.

 

[Overtorque]

Like someone else said "it's a race to the bottom". The market is saturated with too many people that will work for nothing. They are the ones that will kill the industry.

The market is free and needs a well-earned recalibration. Yes there is a glut of participants, but what level of quality are most customers receiving with their deliverables? What level of professionalism are they encountering? so many factors that could distinguish a hard working and dedicated professional in this industry vs a random kid with a Mavic who thinks he can conquer the universe with his backpack drone and a few Youtube instructional videos under his belt.

 

[Personal Drone Repair]

The ugly truth is this.
This market is flooded with competent pilots . Not changing anytime soon . Going at each other is not the answer .
Being a 107 pilot myself , I completely understand both sides of this coin . The only way to affect positive , long lasting change will be to stick together . All of us .
And there in lies the real challenge .
As long as any business can pit us against each other , they will be the ones that win the finance race .
A lot of this will shake out with time . It will take a while for a lot of pilots to be negatively effected by this pricing issue .
After that , the options available to these aerial temp services will tighten up a bit . A bit .
As I see it , the only way to bring back pricing power is to offer exclusivity .
The demand is and will always be there for this technology . Finding a way for all pilots to come together , much like a football team , our team vs the world , will be the only way to garner back some pricing power .
How that shapes up only time will tell . Until then , let's use the power we do have and not let other businesses drive a wedge between us . That is a power that we have now .
Juz My Two Pennies

 

[WJK]

DroneBase Android App wants 3 things:
1.) Allow DroneBase to access photos, media, and files on your device. Deny/Allow
2.) Allow DroneBase to make and manage phone calls? Deny/Allow
3.) Allow DroneBase to access this device's location? Deny/Allow

What do you think about turning your phone over to DroneBase?

 

[WJK]

Can someone explain to me why DroneBase needs all those permissions?

The second requirement is somewhat disturbing. Allowing them access to all my files and photos does not sit really good with me. It seems like they want to completely control all content. That is fine if they are paying for it but, what about other photos that I take?

Is this common and standard? I just want to understand the system first. Thank you for understanding.

 

[Steve-o]

Have any of you accepted missions from Drone Base. They have sent me a few mission, I rejected all of them because they didn't want to pay anything. Well $60.00 for an hour drive and nine picture shoot.
This amazes me that they seem just like the real estate people, that our time doesn't have much value, and what really gets me is 107 pilots are taking missions like this.

My issue isn't with Drone Deploy as much as it is these companies that want us to work for nothing.
That is almost as bad as these banks and lenders that want photos taken of properties and offer fifteen to twenty dollars per property, and people are doing it.

If 107 pilots ever want to start making money, we all need to hold out for decent money.

Ok, I've complained enough

Cheers to all of you.

I’ve only flown one mission for DB. I have no complaints about the pay ??‍

 

[RickMC]

I’ve only flown one mission for DB. I have no complaints about the pay ??‍

Wow what kind of job was that? The highest payout for a DB job I ever got was $250.

 

[Fred Garvin]

Wow what kind of job was that? The highest payout for a DB job I ever got was $250.

Yeah....$1300 job? I’d take that.....

 

[Steve-o]

Wow what kind of job was that? The highest payout for a DB job I ever got was $250.

It was 2 flights. An RGB daylight flight at solar noon and a thermal imaging flight of the same property just past evening civil.

The funny thing is the evening flight required the use of my old Inspire 1 (which I literally have not flown in probably 2 years ?). Now I’m glad I never got rid of it I guess

 

[Tgleason]

Sir, you just gave a good example of those killing the business. You want to work for below minimum wage you just add to the number people that don't think their time is worth much. You aren't going to get five to eight jobs in one day. Now let me ask you, do you have your license, and plenty of liability insurance. Think you can run a car 120 miles for 10 bunks you aren't considering true cost of a car, insurance, maintenance, depreciation. I figure my cost at 54 cents a mile, but I don't drive junk because I need a dependable vehicle. So in reality your profit was used up by your vehicle expense and your drive time was free, hope you enjoyed the ride.

58 cents a mile is what i figurem ware and tare gas. Then time to drive. Set up. Take down. Flight logging. Drone maintenance.

 

[Fmehrtens]

Guess I'm the dumb kid with a mavic and a YouTube. In reality I live in rural Iowa and there are just not enough jobs to justify a full time gig, a big rig setup and quit working for the railroad. BUT....it helps dealing with Dronebase being the only pilot around. I refuse the first offer of $60 and it goes to $75 and if its further away I will refuse again until $100. But your all right. We need to refuse them. Maybe proof of insurance and tougher licensing test (field test) would help. I stumbled on this forum looking to see what Dronebase cut was?

 

[LUIS MARTINEZ]

Guess I'm the dumb kid with a mavic and a YouTube. In reality I live in rural Iowa and there are just not enough jobs to justify a full time gig, a big rig setup and quit working for the railroad. BUT....it helps dealing with Dronebase being the only pilot around. I refuse the first offer of $60 and it goes to $75 and if its further away I will refuse again until $100. But your all right. We need to refuse them. Maybe proof of insurance and tougher licensing test (field test) would help. I stumbled on this forum looking to see what Dronebase cut was?

"Maybe proof of insurance and tougher licensing test (field test) would help "
Be careful what you wish for. Asking the feds for tougher standards may yield something you don't expect...or like.

 

[dougcjohn]

Guess I'm the dumb kid with a mavic and a YouTube. In reality I live in rural Iowa and there are just not enough jobs to justify a full time gig, a big rig setup and quit working for the railroad. BUT....it helps dealing with Dronebase being the only pilot around. I refuse the first offer of $60 and it goes to $75 and if its further away I will refuse again until $100. But your all right. We need to refuse them. Maybe proof of insurance and tougher licensing test (field test) would help. I stumbled on this forum looking to see what Dronebase cut was?

Might be a few more Hicks in IA, just haven't considered DroneBase.
As any other market, Iowa will gain sUAV Services as more COOP's, Realty and Construction take on their own gear & pilots. My goal was a transition from long term work to new challenge instead a rocking chair retirement. Looks like you're ahead of me, I'll be looking for the crumbs you toss!

 

[401 Feet]

I have had less than good luck with drone base. I'm in the northern Ohio area and signed up thinking it would be a portfolio builder for me. It has been just the opposite.....a pain and no use to me. There has always been an issue with receiving info from them. Every step along the way of the on boarding, I had to contact them to say I'm completed, what next?? Then after the background, it was dead silence.... Had to email way to many times. Finally get it all straight and send test mission. Said it was all complete and I submit the project. My account is showing able to accept missions but have never seen an email even requesting a shoot. That has been since Oct. of 2018. I'm doing a mavic pro so maybe they want more of a drone or something new, I don't know but find it hard to even find a job posted in my area.

 

[AcesFull]

I'm doing a mavic pro so maybe they want more of a drone or something new, I don't know but find it hard to even find a job posted in my area.

In my experience, that's exactly why. I have a M2Zoom and only get very basic real estate missions from them. I wondered why I didn't even get offered training for more complicated (more pay) missions and dug deep through the InterWebs (Google Page 2 lol) and came to the realization that I'll need more than an M2Z to get anything better. Still, it's bottom feeding pay (lots of opinions on that here) but for me, gets me into the industry. I get offered at least 5-7 missions a week, sometimes more, but it's first come, so if you're a late sleeper and don't get up until 4 am, someone else has already accepted the mission(s).

 

[Tgleason]

Drone base hasnt sent any missions my way. Drone up i get one every once and awhile. Mostly thermal stuff. Which I don't even have

 

[401 Feet]

Drone base hasnt sent any missions my way. Drone up i get one every once and awhile. Mostly thermal stuff. Which I don't even have

Yup! Me too....I completed all of my onboarding in October and never heard a thing. I reached out this past June and they told me I was good and just to wait for missions........as of this email is still waiting!

 

[Tgleason]

Yup! Me too....I completed all of my onboarding in October and never heard a thing. I reached out this past June and they told me I was good and just to wait for missions........as of this email is still waiting!

What area? Im in MD maybe they are lacking in marketing department

 

[WJK]

All I get are advertisements for training from them. I have pretty much written them off.