The most played episodes among Podcast App listeners.

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   Number 1: S7/EP 6 Michael Lilley of Wet Dog Drone Serivces

   Join us for a conversation with Michael Lilley, founder of Wet Dog Drones, as he shares his journey from drone enthusiast to successful construction site documentation specialist. Michael reveals how he built a thriving drone business while working a full-time job in the construction industry. In this episode, Michael discusses:His unconventional 1AM workday schedule and how he manages his drone business on weekendsHow he convinced his employer to become his biggest client after initially facing resistanceThe specifics of construction progression monitoring and how drones save clients thousands of dollarsHis approach to building recurring revenue with strategic flight schedulesPractical advice for drone pilots looking to break into the construction industryWhether you're interested in the construction world, progression update photography, or building a drone business with sustainable income, Michael's story demonstrates the power of persistence and industry expertise. Get the Progression Shots workshop for just $1 here- https://courses.dronelaunchacademy.com/p/how-to-take-project-progression-shots?coupon_code=WETDOG&product_id=5946200 Connect with Michael: https://wetdogdrones.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/wet-dog-drone-services/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/wetdogdrones/

   February 25, 2025·30min
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   Number 2: S1/EP 5: David Dengler from Robotic Air Services

   David is a pilot with Robotic Air Services, a startup in Southern California that focuses on the construction industry—providing drone services using a subcontractor business model that, David says, works. Let him tell you how and why... Two yrs ago, David was working in construction with architecture background. Drones came on the scene and he saw need in as-builts and during construction needs. He became excited and started to put some interest into drones. Are they effective? Can they deliver? Could he create a profitable company? The following year, he built up the company which went full-time in June 2018 and David never looked back. It DID take his own initial investment (he took Drone Launch’s Part107), and he is now profitable. He goes to network events to educate people on what can be done with drones. It works—with a LOT of legwork. David says if you’re going to get into an industry, you need to know how to approach a niche market. For example, architecture is narrow, and marketing takes a lot of thought. He advises that you laser-focus on that. When he tells people he’s a drone pilot, people ask if he works for the army. He responds that he flies a “friendly” drone and is in construction. When he explains further, he says they are amazed. Everyone he talks to leads to something or someone else. When he started out, he had his equipment ready and his business ready. He had a LONG conversation with his CPA. David says—for him—he needed to cut the cord as an employee. If not, he would never have bitten the bullet. He DOES say, “Don’t do what I did, don’t jump off the board unless you know how to swim!” He says what he has going on right now works 75%; he has other plans for the rest of his success plan—risks never go away. Start-Up Equipment His initial equipment was a MavicPro. He jumped in understanding what he wanted to achieve with mapping and point clouds and that was the best drone at that time. He flew his drone for months before committing to the business. He did a lot of investigation by flying a few hundred hours over a few months. He did mapping, flying with intention of creating a point cloud, which is when you fly drone over a site in a grid pattern. He knew targeting a 3D model was going to be the goal. He had to be able to crunch data or deliver a CAD drawing. He says he got great training from Drone Launch Academy, especially as pertains to understanding the weather to fly the best pattern. The orthomosaic map is only the first level. What’s Happening Now? David wants to get into mining and civil construction. He is educating his current clients that the imagery is not just a flat map, but how they can use more of the data. Mapping usually hands off to general contractor. In one of his client’s cases, a general contractor questioned the civil engineer, so he hired David to fly a drone and map the site. He found out that, in some cases, the measurements were off by almost 3 feet. With the drone imagery the measurements are nailed more accurately. He sees this type of work as great opportunity because every time you are called in to work, you can educate people as to how much the drone can help them. “Education is the biggest thing in the drone business” Where Are The Clients? Getting clients is about talking to people and also about how and where to find business. David had to understand what he wanted to accomplish and the niche market, for him—architecture, engineering and construction. You don’t just buy a drone and get business. You have to put work and effort into it. He said you have to learn everything about an industry to talk to people on their level. If you are going into cinematography, he hopes you know how to take great pictures. It’s not putting the drone into the air that’s the hard part, it’s about knowledge about how to make it work as a business. David thinks through everything before the flight. It’s already been set up and checked so when the flight comes, it’s just the push of a button. First Projects & Growth Since going full-time, company started to make money positively in December, passing investment level in January. It only took two months for investment to be re-couped. He doesn’t want to put out numbers because in Southern CA, it’s expensive to live and work. He does say that his first bit of work was done pro-bono, but with organizations that matter. He worked with an organization that preserves portions of land. He asked about the quality of their map imagery. He offered to fly and provide imagery because they are a volunteer association. He says he wanted to begin by giving back FIRST before he focused on developing clients and his own business. That got his name out there and also allowed him to practice in the real world, delivering real world work to real world people. When he delivered, he asked who they knew that he could talk to. Doing that work gave him a portfolio of real work. David’s favorite part of having his own business is being his own boss. There’s nothing better. That also means you are responsible for yourself and it takes self-responsibility. He has to make his own rules, book business. If you crash, you are your own repairman. You are in complete control of your destiny. It’s great and can be terrifying. Yet he wouldn’t change much nor does he regret much. He has been advised to seek venture capital, but then he’d have to focus more on the business, but then you lose autonomy. If you start a corporation, again it goes back to having a really great niche. David says what he is just another contractor—HE can go out and talk to people, that is good enough. Running his own business just makes it less complicated. He just wants to run and grow a good business. His long research period told him real money in drones would be in construction and inspections...simply because it will save money. Connect with David David's email: [email protected] David's Website: www.roboticairservices.com Have a Drone Business? Want to be Interviewed for Season 2? Complete this questionnaire: Drone to 1K Business Owner Application Training from Drone Launch Academy Part 107 Exam Prep Course ($50 off) Aerial Video A to Z Course (20% off) Other Places to Listen iTunes Stitcher Google Play Spotify TuneIn

   July 16, 2019·52min
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   Number 3: S7/EP 2 Matt Nugent of Wing Walker Aerial Photography

   In this episode, we sit down with Matt Nugent, founder of Wing Walker Aerial Photography in Seattle, who shares his journey from reluctant police drone operator to successful drone business owner. Matt reveals how he built a thriving side business generating $5,000+ monthly while maintaining his full-time career in law enforcement. Learn how Matt: Transitioned from basic police drone work to specialized photogrammetry Adapted his business after losing a major client Developed unique nighttime drone mapping techniques Built recurring revenue through civil engineering and development clients Recently landed his biggest month ever at $20,000 Whether you're just starting your drone business or looking to scale existing operations, Matt offers practical insights on finding your niche, building client relationships, and delivering professional results. Connect with Matt: https://www.wingwalkerphotos.com/ Instagram: @wingwalkerphotos Email: [email protected] FREE TRAINING: How to Start a Drone Business in 2025 — Even If You Have NO Experience: https://training.dronelaunchacademy.com/free-drone-business-training-2025/ _____ Use the code PODCAST300 to get the Drone to $1k Course with a $300 discount! https://dronelaunchacademy.com/drone-to-1k-2023/ _____

   January 21, 2025·44min
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   Number 4: S2/EP 8: Jeremiah Oschwald from Beardhouse Media

   Jeremiah Oschwald owns and operates Beardhouse Media, a real estate marketing business, and Overland Pioneers, an outdoor lifestyle marketing business. David: “Why don't you tell us who you are and what your company is? How did you get into real estate marketing? When did you first mess around with drones?” Jeremiah has been in the real estate marketing business for 4 ½ years, drones for about 3 ½ yrs. There was a big boom in drone popularity but there weren't a lot of people licensed. Jeremiah took the DLA Part 107 class, saying it was great for him because he’s a visual learner. He began Overland Pioneers out of a desire to do more with his life than 5-7real estate listings a day 7 days a week. He wanted to see and film things and get paid to travel. He started with wanting to help small businesses and began going to restaurants and shooting seven small short social media videos that they could post on Facebook. Then, he shot the parents’ house of a friend—Josh Shepherd with the Kentucky Life Real Estate Property Management (see link below)—who later introduced him to team leaders of a large Keller Williams office in Lexington. Jeremiah was invited to talk in front of their monthly sales meeting of 65 or 70 agents. He was terrified but went in having done some research on real estate videos and knowing he needed to build a case. 15 or 20 people came up to let him know they had a listing coming up and would like to use him so he instantly got a lot of clients. Jeremiah feels he lucked out because Lexington was an underserved population in central Kentucky with 3000 agents in one MLS area. He started packaging the videos and, last year, he did over a hundred videos for agents, auctioneers and car dealers. In order to figure out what to charge for real estate walkthrough videos, Jeremiah felt that what people described was too complex—even after hearing a long explanation, he still didn't know what they were charging. They’d say they charged $3,000 to $4,000 per listing but were only getting listings 2-3 times/month—with drones being a very small portion of that. So Jeremiah decided to go to a flat rate system...he says agents use him on every listing. “I don't care if it’s an 1100 square foot house or 6,000 square foot house--it's $125 for just the walkthrough video, if I add the drone, it’s $200.” These are homes that are going to be sold within 24 to 48 hours, and the videos are 50% of their selling package. Jeremiah says that by doing professional photography AND video, they will definitely hire him because he’s a better marketing and listing presentation tool for them. David: “Can you talk about managing client's expectations? How many jobs are you doing per week during your slow and busy seasons?” Here is the past week’s schedule, as an example: Monday: one re-shoot for a new agent. Tuesday: five cabins about 40 miles from Lexington. Wednesday: three local shoots. Thursday: it was raining outside so the job was cancelled. Friday: one auction video. He’s averaging three per day / 12-15 per week--weather permitting in the busy season. Even though that's a typical day, many times, it’s very dependent on weather; there are always reschedules. David: “Would you be comfortable giving us a range of business income for 2019?” Beardhouse Media made over six figures, 40% of that was drone work. “Even when I discount work, I make more money because beforehand they wouldn't have used drones at all. I have relationships with people I actually WANT to work with; one of the biggest rewards for me is when someone calls and I can say I don't have time.” David: “Tell me about Overland Pioneers—what it is and how it came about.” Overland Pioneers is vehicle-based adventure travel. Overlanding is when the travel is the goal, the destination is getting there, i.e. cruising through trails and camping. They got a trailer from Xventure Trailers and went to Prince Edward Island, driving all over Nova Scotia for three weeks. Then they put a series on YouTube showing all the beautiful places. David: “Are you doing Overland Pioneer to work with certain brands and travel for free? Do you end up taking home money on top of that or is it just a side fun hobby?” For Jeremiah, the goal was to replace income that would be made if he were at home, but then also being able to see the world during the warmer months. Last year was close to 70 days of travel; the Overland community is awesome for networking and jobs. David: “Are you starting to shift away from real estate and doing more commercial video work for content marketing with different companies?” Jeremiah says he’ll always keep the real estate because he enjoys the work and his regular clients, but if he can pick up one or two fun, big-paying jobs... he absolutely will. “It’s not about you, it's about your client and everything you do for them. I'm not trying to take the kudos...I'm trying to give my clients even more value.” David: “If you were talking to somebody who's thinking about starting a drone business or had just started one—what would be your biggest piece of advice?” Jeremiah laughs, saying that everyone wrecks their first drone. He suggests finding a crappy, older drone on eBay and practicing flying above trees without coming below the horizon line. He says to stay in line of sight, get your drone license and get insured. Drones are a tool...a way to make money. The camera, computer, editing software and drone are the only overhead besides car maintenance and gas. If anyone has the money, it’s great to invest in something like a Mavic 2Pro. Jeremiah now flies a Mavic 4 Advanced with a few polar pro filters. He’s shooting real estate marketing for mobile devices and speed is important in order to show the whole house and how it flows. “If you're doing the video for views, that's an act of vanity. If you're trying to sell the home, people shopping for that size home in that area will watch the whole video, and only about five people are most likely shopping for homes.” Jeremiah admits that he wants to be at the best of what he does. He cares about what he’s doing—if he didn’t, he says, it would show in his footage and to his clients. He takes pride in his work and not getting discouraged is the hardest part. Jeremiah has walked into a real estate office and asked for a meeting with the team leader asking, ‘What would it take to have walk-in privileges? Do you want me to do recruitment videos? I'll do four/year just to be able to walk in and say hi to the agents when I’d like.’ Every time he walks into an office, he walks out with two or three more things on the calendar. Jeremiah says that everyone knows a few real estate agents who they can contact to ask to shoot their next listening. His first ones took a lot longer so he made a lot less money and he did a ton of free stuff starting out. After having done five or six these listings, he could then say he was their local expert. Then he could also can show the other five listings as B roll or extra footage. He reminds people to provide a lot of value upfront, 24-hour turnaround time, and affordability. Connect with Jeremiah: Facebook: @beardhousemediaky Instagram: @beardhousemedia Kentucky Life Property Management US Forest Service Unmanned Aircraft Systems FAQs ...

   May 19, 2020·54min
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   Number 5: S2/EP 7: Preston Jensen from Jensen Air LLC

   Preston owns Jensen Air in North Dakota, working primarily in a seasonal real estate David: “Why don’t you tell us a little bit about your business and what you do? Preston started his drone business on the side. He defined himself as different than other drone business owners because his customer base was already in place. His brother—a real estate broker for Remax—needed someone to do commercial drone footage. Preston did a little research, figured he could do it and “pulled the trigger” on studying to fly a drone. Preston’s first drone was a Mavic Air, and has since upgraded to a Mavic Zoom, which handles the wind in North Dakota much better. Preston has a YouTube channel and recently aired a video on the remote ID—a big topic for drone pilots these days. Preston understands needing to keep the sky safe but believes it's making the playing field uneven for a small drone operators. David: “When did you first get started in drones? Two years ago, he started strictly doing drone photography for real estate for his brother. Once he got his license, he thought he may as well turn it into a business. He created a Facebook page and website. He’s continued to put out content, and his business has been getting more attention: “You've got to put out a little free content so people can see what you're capable of. You have to differentiate yourself from the rest of the crowd. The more you spread your work around, the more people will find out about you and hire you.” Now, Preston has premiere customers, including a local university and a development company. However, when he first put together some footage, he had to figure out what video editing software to use, how to get videos to customers, etc. These things were big learning experiences. He began just taking video clips and photos and giving real estate agents raw footage to make their own videos, although he would still make sure the clips were very cinematic. He likes to see how creative people can get with his shots. David: “Up in your neck of the woods, what would you charge for a typical real estate shoot where you're doing photos and video clips without any editing?” Preston charges $200, which is about ½ hour of shooting but editing and color grading afterward is what takes all the time. He uses Canva, Photoshop and Lightroom as his main editing tools. If he’s doing just photos, he charges about $150, but if it's multiple photos or panoramas, he'll charge $200. For a single photo or refresh on a house, he’ll usually charge $50. If he has travel out to rural areas, he’ll also charge a travel fee. Lastly, before he sends his drone up to shoot, he scans the yard to make everything look nice, which realtors appreciate. David: “Do you stay pretty busy—especially in wintertime or freezing conditions, which are not ideal drone or real estate selling weather?” Preston says the busy season is spring to fall; most of the activities slow down in the wintertime because the cold weather is hard on the equipment, specifically the battery. Also, realtors have better luck selling with photos that have lush green grass and trees—not snow pictures. David: “Have you found real estate to be successful? Have you expanded into other areas or are you sticking with that niche for now?” Although Preston says he’s sticking with the niche of real estate because it’s given him so much business over the past couple of years, he’s still willing to expand. For example, he’s interested in mapping, because he’s always nervous about the accuracy of the drone mapping. He’s also been talking to a local radio station trying to get into radio tower inspections. However, right now, he says, he costs a lot of money for them. David: “During your busy season—and only on the real estate side—how busy do you get? How many jobs are you getting per month?” Sometimes he may be swamped and doing a drone job over his lunch hour, sometimes not. He’s always taking photos and putting content up on Instagram and Facebook. His town flooded a little bit this past fall and he took pictures and posted it to a “What's Happening?” page in Valley City. The last time he checked, the site had 19,000 views, so it was an easy way to get great exposure. Sometimes he gets random calls – like someone wanting to borrow a clip for a promotional video, which was free advertising. David: “You’re doing this on the side of your regular job. You said you work as an office manager during the day—how has that helped you on the business side of drones?” It has really helped him save money. He can't just buy the most expensive video editing software. He has to take that into consideration, especially if just doing it as a side gig. Drone insurance was also difficult to find around where he lives. He now pays monthly for Skywatch so when it's cold or nasty outside, he doesn't have to pay for insurance. He pays for extra coverage with DJI and has liability insurance through the company. He used Squarespace to build his website and pays only $15-20 bucks per month for the site. He’s also taken advantage of Fiverr for design work. “I keep dumping all the money that I've made from my drone business back into the company—I keep improving software and equipment. I keep building myself up and making it better. If everybody else is improving what they're doing, you're gonna get left behind.” David: “For people at the beginning or just interested in listening to what others are doing— what would you recommend if they want a drone business but aren’t sure where to start.” Preston says the first thing to do is start studying for the Part 107. He says that will open doors—but it's not going to guarantee business. You have to go out and get that. “Be optimistic because there are many different avenues to make money with drones—mapping agricultural, public safety, all sorts of things. There's new technology coming out every day to make money from.” Another thing he says to do is to set up an artist's gallery on your website and throw up photos that people can order—HD, metal prints, canvases, any professional printing options. David: “Are people reaching out to you asking to be able to use footage that you already have?” Yes, I've had people contact me about using photos for their website, or as a background for Facebook. I said to go ahead and use it because it’s free advertising. Preston says most of his traction comes from Facebook and Instagram. Connect with Preston: Website: http://www.jensenairllc.com/ Facebook: @jensenairllc Instagram: @jensenairllc Have a Drone Business? Want to be Interviewed for Season 3? Complete this questionnaire: Drone to 1K Business Owner Application Training from Drone Launch Academy Part 107 Exam Prep Course ($50 off) Aerial Photo Pro Course ($50 off) Aerial Video A to Z Course ($100 off)

   May 13, 2020·36min
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