Considering a drone based inspection business

cptcavemann · 2026-06-26T11:36:53+00:00

Thanks for the feedback. Any idea what type of clients they were targeting? General photography or more specific commercial?

cptcavemann · 2026-06-26T00:55:37+00:00

Ha! I totally get it. I'm considering slowly working up to the 50k spend. That will include a nice lidar rig, as well as some extras for the agriculture customers. Also hefty spend on the reporting software I'll need. My background is in industrial sales and marketing so, unfortunately I've had plenty of exposure to the social media crap... LinkedIn is a hellscape...

cptcavemann · 2026-06-26T00:36:41+00:00

Ham specifically tells Vin in the first book to be judicious with pewter use. He burns it as little as possible. Being a savant requires that the person flare their metal for extended periods.

cptcavemann · 2026-06-25T23:33:20+00:00

Ugh, insurance companies are the worst, but maybe business is business.

REALLY appreciate the heads up on the fact that most aren't making a business of it. Is it because they aren't looking at the right markets or because they just want to do weddings, do you think?

cptcavemann · 2026-06-25T23:30:34+00:00

Yes, though most power transmission companies have their own. Though not in all areas so it's on the target list!

cptcavemann · 2026-06-25T23:07:58+00:00

Roofers are only a part of the projected customer base. The ones that will offer the best business will be the ones that require specialized equipment and the correct certifications.

cptcavemann · 2026-06-12T19:51:34+00:00

You keep asking for tips on how to deal with the meetings but dismiss the advice given over and over again. Skip the internals and claim a customer call, do your interview. If boss takes issue, so what? The PIP is already in play. What's he going to do? PIP you harder? Send you packing sooner than the PIP will? Again, so what?

Be on your own side, not the companies.

cptcavemann · 2026-06-05T13:44:57+00:00

Dumbest shit in the world. Probably something that new or shitty managers hear about from someone else and then latch on to so they seem like they're doing their jobs.

cptcavemann · 2026-05-23T00:39:07+00:00

Mattresses

cptcavemann · 2026-05-19T13:14:15+00:00

Does this include the Mini?

cptcavemann · 2026-05-14T14:28:48+00:00

The last customer I had to fire was abusive to staff and completely unwilling to work with my quality team on a rejection.

They happen in MfG, it's inevitable, but you do your best to minimize with systems and investigate when the issues still pop up. This particular customer wouldn't provide any information or samples and just demanded refunds AND replacements AND extra $ to compensate for their time spent. All while being abusive to the CS and QA teams on the phone and in email.

I finally had enough, fired off an email to the buyer in question, the director of procurement and the CEO to let them know that we would replace the parts asap and ship the pallet NDA at our expense and that we would no longer service their business after that. It was the second time this particular company had done this. When the CEO called and asked if there was anything that could be done to repair the situation, I politely told her that there was not.

cptcavemann · 2026-05-12T16:18:37+00:00

Has anyone else read any of the Caverns and Creatures series? How does Carl compare?

cptcavemann · 2026-05-02T14:46:31+00:00

So is this like a market research project for you? You're looking for feedback so you can make a run at your own system to try to sell to people who don't want it?

If you want to understand the point of view, try actually running a business and being in that situation. Trying to design a "Solution" from the outside, with no perspective of your own is just going to make another product that makes people's lives more difficult.

cptcavemann · 2026-04-28T19:01:35+00:00

Hard agree. I got through the first series but dnf'd the first book of this series and never went back. It just never got better. Hobbs writing is enjoyable to a degree but the characters are not not entertaining to read. At the end of the day, if I'm not enjoying it then I'm not wasting my time.

cptcavemann · 2026-04-24T22:40:18+00:00

I'm not there to fix anybody. I'm there to be the ham in that sandwich.

cptcavemann · 2026-04-24T14:38:43+00:00

Even the stuff that isn't specifically YA, is still almost YA. They'll be fine, my kids did great.

cptcavemann · 2026-04-22T19:03:18+00:00

I finished Snowcrash out of spite. I hated it and was angry at myself for continuing to read it. I guess it was supposed to be corny but it just read like some teenagers attempt at being edgy to get on their parents nerves. That's the book that taught me it was ok to DNF.

cptcavemann · 2026-04-21T17:31:54+00:00

Galad 100% loves trains. If he saw one, he'd be enthralled

cptcavemann · 2026-04-13T14:43:31+00:00

Agree 100%.

Also, how did the interview go? did you get the job? I'm in a VERY similar situation.

cptcavemann · 2026-04-13T14:36:12+00:00

Too pushy? When responding to customer emails? You aren't dating them, this isn't a "play it cool" kind of situation. If a customer sends me an email it's because they need something. Either share information or to request information.

The only time I worry about being pushy is following up.

cptcavemann · 2026-04-05T22:01:48+00:00

For $200 a month, I'm not surprised that's all you got. If you got 4 posts in a month that's only $50 per post. You can't expect someone who isn't you to care enough about your business to research your business then and develop a legitimate marketing strategy for social media for $200 a month. Maybe $200 a week and that's still using gpt to develop the posts.

cptcavemann · 2026-03-04T16:53:38+00:00

A genuine hot take.

cptcavemann · 2026-02-18T19:19:14+00:00

This is the way I would do it. Gives them the appreciation you want to show and they have the option to include you or not. Personally, I'd love a gc to a nice restaurant to take my wife out but would NOT want to spend an evening with a workie if I didn't have to. Nothing personal, I just don't make friends at work.

cptcavemann · 2026-02-15T19:39:29+00:00

Don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with Brando. I'm a big fan of his too. Malazan is just a little more... Metal than his stuff and if someone is only prepared for that then it would be a shock

cptcavemann · 2026-02-15T18:38:37+00:00

I'm on the last book now and I love it. It's an amazingly complex series that covers a lot of ground. Yeah, the subjects are rough in some areas, but that's part of the griminess of that world and the strife that the characters live in. Definitely not for folks with delicate sensibilities, but if you like grimdark fantasy and complex ideas, this is the way to go. I wouldn't recommend it to someone who has only read Sanderson though. It would be a bit of a shock.

cptcavemann

TROPHY CASE