been trying to figure out the best way to find consistent paid work. i see sites like Dronebase and AirVuz and a few others mentioned around here but honestly ive heard mixed things. signed up for Dronebase a while back and got maybe two missions in 4 months and one of them got cancelled last minute which was annoying. feels like a race to the bottom on pricing on some of these platforms.

my buddy keeps telling me its all networking and you just have to know people in construction or real estate or film but im kind of introverted and the idea of going to like chamber of commerce mixers makes me want to crawl into a hole. curious if anyone has actually built a decent pipeline through online platforms or marketplaces vs just old fashioned word of mouth and relationships. or if theres platforms worth using that i havent heard of

your buddy is right unfortunately, its mostly who you know, especially for the better paying stuff. the platforms can get you some early experience and a few bucks but the clients that actually pay well and come back regularly almost always come from a referral or someone you met in person somehow. i got my two biggest ongoing clients ? one is a civil engineering firm and the other does commercial property management ? both came from just talking to people at completely unrelated events. like one was literally at a neighborhood barbecue.

that said i dont think you have to do the chamber of commerce thing specifically. linkedin has actually worked for me more than i expected, not posting drone content but just connecting with people in industries that use aerial data and occasionally reaching out directly. less awkward than in person if you're more introverted

Dronebase is pretty hit or miss depending on where you live I think. I'm in a mid-size city and it's basically dead here, friend of mine in a bigger metro says he gets semi-regular missions. the payout per mission never really felt worth it to me once you factor in drive time and the fact that they own the deliverables. just my experience though