Starting a Drone-Based Business: Tips and Tricks

Many technologies commonly used by civilians, such as the Internet, GPS, and microwave ovens, have been borrowed from the military. A prime example is the computer; specifically, the ENIAC, the first programmable machine, was developed for calculating artillery firing tables and decoding encrypted messages.

Similarly, drones share this military heritage. The concept of an unmanned aerial vehicle was first realized in 1898 when Nikola Tesla showcased a radio-controlled vessel he termed “teleautomatics,” which translates to remote control, at the Electric Exposition in Madison Square Garden, New York, designed as a prototype bomber.

Later, American inventor Edwin Armstrong advanced this technology, creating a fully operational drone by 1917, marking the first use of drones to target enemy positions in World War I.

Today’s high-tech drones are used in all areas of civilian life — from agriculture, meteorology, and security systems to medicine, sports (drone racing) and entertainment. The only thing left to discuss is the scale of their application to find their use in terms of business.

Did you know that the global drone market will reach $58.4 billion by 2026? Imagine the prospects these numbers promise for startups. What if you could be part of that growth? If this backstory has got you thinking about starting a business and using drones, then this text is for you.

We will tell you how drones can be the foundation of your success story. The key to success is drone app development services. It is software that enables the use of drones as components for business projects. Below, we talk about it in more detail.

Picking a niche for your drone business

Identifying the most profitable niche is the first step to success. The variety of applications for UAVs (photography, delivery, property inspection, 3D construction, etc.) would capture the imagination of even their inventors.

But this inspiring abundance of choice also presents a problem: how to choose the right niche to make the business in demand and profitable? The solution, borrowed from marketing, is to study the market for untapped niches and growth areas of existing ones.

Amazon, Zipline (Africa), Wing (Australia and USA) and Flytrex (Israel) are examples of successful businesses using drones, and what they all have in common is that they are all used in the logistics industry to deliver items ranging from gift packages to medical supplies.

If you’re just starting out, the potential for using drones to solve a business problem is measured by the ability to use them specifically in your city or even your neighborhood. Don’t limit your choice of niche to logistics, because the potential of the drone market is huge, especially in areas where the technology is just beginning to be implemented:

1. Construction: Drones can be used for aerial photography and mapping to create accurate 3D models of construction sites. This helps in planning and monitoring construction progress.
2. Infrastructure inspection — buildings & bridges: UAVs can safely and quickly inspect hard-to-reach areas to identify damage and repair needs
3. Film industry: Drones are used to create stunning aerial footage and dynamic shots in movies and commercials.
4. Journalism: UAVs help journalists get unique footage from the field or for investigative journalism, especially in hard-to-reach or dangerous areas.
5. Advertising and public events — to create light shows: With a number of micro-drones equipped with light-emitting diode (LED) modules, it is possible to create impressive performances that are synchronized to music. This is used at concerts and festivals as an environmentally friendly alternative to fireworks. 

Outside our list are games and quests, where drones are used to perform various fun tasks, security — patrolling the territory, search and rescue in case of natural or man-made disasters, and finally — energy, monitoring power lines and checking solar panels.

Whatever niche you choose, the first thing you need to do is to find out if there is a demand for your proposed business offer: call potential customers among your friends and acquaintances, conduct surveys in social networks.

Analyze the results, not only positive feedback, but also comments or even criticism. If you get positive responses from 40-50% or more, this is a good sign — your idea in your chosen niche definitely has potential for realization. Sky Watch‘s Ilan Yusim shares more insights on how to build a thriving drone business.

What equipment will you need?

Drones for filming, delivery, mapping have different characteristics. Once you’ve identified your business niche, it’s time to think about equipment choices. Note: Not understanding which drone to choose for a specific task can lead to ineffective fulfillment of business objectives.

For example, in the security industry, if you decide drones that do not support software for automated patrols and real-time data transmission, it will at the very least affect your brand reputation, and at the very most, it may jeopardize the security target. 

Familiarizing yourself with the required specifications of UAVs and software will help you compare them for your application.

Drone, hardware, and software requirements for different business niches

Business niche	Required characteristics	Add. equipment	Software requirements
Agriculture	Multispectral cameras, long flight, accurate GPS	Sensors for soil and plants	Software for processing data on the state of soil and plants, analytics
Construction & inspection	High quality camera, wind resistant, 3D modeling	Lidars, thermal imagers	Programs for creating 3D models and mapping objects
Logistics & delivery	High load capacity, long flight, reliable navigation	Cargo containers, security systems	Software for logistics management, route planning, tracking
Security and safety	Thermal imagers, maneuverability, long-term patrolling	Night vision, loudspeakers	Software for automatic patrolling and real-time data transmission
Photography & videography	4K camera, image stabilization	Lenses, stabilization systems	Video and photo processing software, stabilization software
Outdoor advertising	High maneuverability, bright LED displays, stable flight	LED panels, advertising banners	Software for managing the display of advertising, flight planning

However, in addition to the drones themselves and additional equipment, it is important for your business model to be successful in any niche that the drone supports the right software. Only in such a bundle — UAV, hardware, software — will your business be able to realize its potential.

In agriculture, for example, it is impossible to effectively analyze the condition of crops without specialized software for processing data from multispectral cameras, which, according to SECL Group’s experience, is the most demanded software. Logistics and delivery require an application for automatic route planning and real-time cargo tracking. Unlock the potential of the drone industry with the Drone Guide.

It is beneficial to use a professional drone app engineering service to automate processes, reduce costs, and improve accuracy. If a standard software solution is not enough, it is recommended to order development or choose ready-made solutions to integrate drones into your business extremely efficiently.

• Objection: High cost of professional drones.
• Answer: Start with a basic model and then upgrade the equipment.
• Alternatives: Rent drones in the early stages of your business.

How to reduce costs and increase efficiency

Your business model is based on a specific drone usage scenario. This scenario should be realized by pre-installed software. But often, standard software does not take into account nuances such as individual settings and flight scenarios — we are talking about autonomous missions and specific algorithms.

For example, agriculture may require algorithms for plant health analysis that are not included in the standard software. Disadvantages also include the inability to integrate with other systems — ERP & CRM and security systems; a consistent user interface and experience; and security.

These aspects underscore the importance of developing or customizing drone software to meet the specific needs of your business, which only an experienced team of designers and integrators specializing in drone technology and business solutions can provide. Consider turning to companies that have been established in the industry for nearly 20 years.

For example, SECL Group can develop applications for route automation, data processing and business integration. On the security side, implementing specialized drone control apps can help you — this way, third-party developers can solve the problem of managing numerous UAVs and eliminate the need for manual data processing.

P.S.

If you’re wary of high software costs, consider affordable SaaS solutions that scale as your business grows.

Closings

Incorporating drones into your business opens up opportunities in industries ranging from agriculture to advertising. By choosing the right niche and enhancing your drone operations with specialized software solutions, you can maximize efficiency and minimize costs.

Implementing drone technology, whether it’s custom development or SaaS platforms, can be the key to scaling your business and maintaining leadership in a rapidly evolving market. Now is the time to get started!

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