Drones are now an everyday part of life. Up until recent years, drones were so expensive that it was cost prohibitive to operate, let alone own, a drone of your own. That is no longer the case. Now, you can walk to any park and see people flying drones in the same way that kites were flown for recreational purposes in the past. An investment of a thousand dollars will buy you a drone, and a good one at that.  Have you ever thought about how to make money using Drones? With the advent of new technology in drones, they are becoming more and more useful in commercial capacities, and drones need operators. That is where you, as the owner, show up to make money.

Here are a few ways that people use their drones that were once used for recreation to make money:

Take aerial Drone Photos and Videos

This is perhaps the easiest way to generate revenue. Use the HD (high-definition)camera on, (or mounted to), your drone to take great aerial photos or make professional videos. There are tons of industries that will pay good money for your photos, you just need to know where to look so that you can sell your services.
To take the highest quality photos and video, you’ll want to make sure your drone is equipped with a high definition camera, as well as a gimbal. This will help to produce clear quality photos and video that do not shake or appear fuzzy. You’ll also want to make sure your drone is easily maneuverable, and capable of taking indoor and outdoor footage.

You can offer all kinds of photography services, including: weddings, events, sports, real estate, marketing, etc.

Drone Aerial Surveying Services

Drones can take photos from the air at up to 400 feet, this can be beneficial to a land surveying company that needs good aerial photos so that they can assess the value of a property, draw property boundaries, and survey large parcels of land.

Gone are the days of chartering manned aircraft, paying for jet fuel, and incurring a great amount of cost to survey vast amounts of land. Now, a drone can do what a manned aircraft can for a fraction of the cost. Aerial surveying applications include the following: topography, land feature recognition, digital mapping, GIS applications, and archaeology.

Retail Drone Sales & Resale

Do you have a penchant for making things new again? Become someone who purchases used drones, fixes them up, and resells them for a profit. Since drones can still be quite cost prohibitive to a new user, you can tap into a market of buyers looking to find drones for a steal. While working on the resale aspect of your business, you can also provide repair services, in addition to selling new drones for buyers who don’t want to buy refurbished drones.

The market for drones is growing exponentially, so it is safe to say that if you have a talent for sales, this would be the perfect fit for you.

Rent Your Drone for Commercial Use

Do you own one or more high end drones? Would you be willing to lend them out to friends for recreational use? Why not turn this into a business and start renting your own fleet of drones for either recreational or commercial use?

While you will incur the cost of insurance coverage, and perhaps higher liability cost due to the nature of use, you can turn a few hundred dollars into a steady stream of income by renting to users that can’t afford to purchase their own drones, but that won’t mind spending a few dollars to rent one of yours.

Become An Inspector Using Drones

Most energy and utility companies will charter private helicopters and planes to inspect power lines, substations, and other facilities of that nature. They will especially do this when the equipment is located in spaces that humans shouldn’t be. Your drone is the cost-efficient version of that very expensive helicopter or plane.

Your drone can navigate the sometimes awkward spaces a larger aircraft can’t go, and will also take on the danger factor that a human pilot would face.
Make sure your drone is equipped with a high definition camera, GPS tracker, and a powerful video transmitter with long range capabilities. This will maximize your drone’s ability to perform the necessary work.

Final thoughts

We only showed you a couple of different ways to convert your drone investment into actual revenue, there are many other options out there. You just need to find your niche and figure out what will work for you!

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