Keeping Dronedesk Free
I know how hard it is to get up-and-running and estabished as a drone operator - I've lived it. There are any number of companies queing up to charge you a monthly subscription for services like accounting, web hosting, job portals and so on. Those subscriptions can quickly add up to a significant sum each month.
So, when I came up with Dronedesk as a concept, I wanted it not only to be an app that would help operators streamline and standardise their operation, but also be affordable. And you can't get more affordable than free!
I generate a very modest amount of ad revenue from the in-app ads that are shown on the free version of Dronedesk. I also subsidise the free service with subscriptions from the paid service. This approach does means the Pro plan pricing is set slightly higher than I'd like. But, I hope that established pros in the business will be happy to give a bit of a leg-up to new-starters.
What's next?
Dronedesk is what's termed a "bootstrap startup" which means the project is entirely self-funded by me with no external investors whatsoever. That's a bit of a double-edged sword in that it means that we run on a tight budget. There's no swanky parties at Christmas or expensive business lunches here. No chance.
But the incredibly positive benefit of bootstrapping is that I'm not answerable to anyone except our users.
I can steer the development of Dronedesk in the direction users want it to go instead of in the direction that would give investors the best return on their money.
I find that liberating and exciting and I believe it means I can continue to deliver a product that's sustainable, ever-improving and genuinely useful to its users. Forever.
Thanks for your interest in Dronedesk. I look forward to welcoming you on board so that you too can experience the daily joy of "less admin, more flying"!
Dorian Ellis
Founder and Director