I began The Drone Woman in 2013 after taking a school course on drones. The identify wasn’t aspirational — it was descriptive. I used to be actually the drone lady. As in, typically the one one. After placing on my marriage ceremony drone present, I’m positively satisfied that extra good ladies will enter this area.
Now let’s take a step again to the early client drone trade, which was overwhelmingly male. Commerce exhibits, racing occasions, tech conferences, generally I’d spot one or two different ladies.
The predominantly male viewers was predictable: DIY tinkerers who got here from mannequin plane communities. FPV racing fanatics from the gaming world. Hobbyists who wished to construct their very own rigs and crash them into timber repeatedly till they figured it out. Don’t get me improper — I liked (and nonetheless love) that group. If that’s you, thanks to your help over time! I see you and I do respect you!
However I’d like to see extra ladies discover their place on this trade. Quick ahead to 2025, and I simply had a drone present at my marriage ceremony. And out of the blue, I’m getting messages from brides-to-be, marriage ceremony planners and ladies within the occasions trade asking how they’ll do that.
One thing elementary is shifting within the drone trade. And weddings — an trade dominated by ladies — is likely to be the catalyst that lastly brings gender steadiness to drones.
Why early drones attracted a male viewers
Flying drones is actually not an inherently masculine exercise. Nonetheless, they attracted a closely male demographic as a result of they aligned with hobbies and communities that had been already male-dominated, like tinkering, racing and gaming.
At the same time as drones turned business instruments — for inspections, mapping, agriculture, supply — the industries adopting them first (building, infrastructure, logistics) skewed male.
I carved out my area of interest protecting this know-how, however for years, I used to be aware of being an outlier. Convention speaker lineups had been 95% males. Product launches featured all-male engineering groups. Advertising supplies confirmed dudes in fields flying drones.
The message was clear, even when unintentional: Drones are for guys.
Drone exhibits are altering the narrative
The primary drone gentle present I noticed in particular person was in 2023 — a Star Wars-themed spectacle at an Oakland A’s baseball recreation placed on by Sky Components. This wasn’t about constructing, crashing or racing. This was artwork. It was storytelling. It was emotional.
Drone exhibits are synced to music. They inform narratives. They evoke emotions. They’re designed to make you cry at a proposal or gasp at a theme park finale. Simply watch your entire model of the drone present at my very own marriage ceremony to know it for those who don’t consider me:
Drone gentle exhibits have what I take into account a female high quality. It’s not as a result of ladies are the one ones who respect magnificence or emotion, however as a result of the inventive, narrative-driven nature of drone exhibits appeals to a totally completely different viewers than FPV racing or DIY builds.
And that viewers? It contains much more ladies.
Weddings often is the gateway
It’s on secret that the marriage trade is overwhelmingly pushed by ladies. In response to numerous trade reviews:
- Almost 70% of marriage ceremony planning choices are made or closely influenced by brides, in line with Wedding ceremony Wire information
- 97% of marriage ceremony planners are ladies, in line with information from Profession Explorer
- Wedding ceremony content material creators, bloggers and influencers additionally skew closely feminine
When drone exhibits began showing at weddings as sendoff options to sparklers or fireworks, one thing clicked. Hey, it was a development worthy sufficient for The New York Instances to cowl it.
Out of the blue, ladies who’d by no means considered drones — who possibly didn’t even know drone exhibits existed — had been asking: “How do I get that at my marriage ceremony?”
At my very own marriage ceremony, I had a number of visitors method me afterward asking for recommendation. Not tech trade folks. Not drone fanatics. Simply {couples} who noticed one thing stunning and personalised and wished it for themselves.
Why marriage ceremony drone exhibits attraction to ladies
Let me break down why marriage ceremony drone exhibits are resonating so strongly with feminine audiences:
1. They’re about storytelling
Not like fireworks (that are cool however generic) or sparklers (which look similar at each marriage ceremony), drone exhibits can inform your particular story.
At my marriage ceremony, we had:
- The precise fortress the place Hamilton proposed (Neuschwanstein in Bavaria)
- A espresso cup and bagel (we met on Espresso Meets Bagel)
- A weightlifter doing a snatch (we’re each aggressive lifters)
This isn’t tech for tech’s sake. It’s tech in service of narrative — which is one thing ladies within the marriage ceremony trade have been doing perpetually with flowers, favors, desk settings and each different personalised element.
2. They’re collaborative and inventive
Planning a drone present marriage ceremony isn’t about understanding propeller mechanics or FAA rules (although these matter). It’s about:
- Storyboarding your relationship
- Selecting music meaning one thing to you
- Scripting voiceover narration
- Designing animations that characterize your journey
These are abilities that marriage ceremony planners, occasion coordinators and creatives have already got. The barrier to entry isn’t essentially technical data. Although that’s important, and somebody on the group must have it, it’s artistic imaginative and prescient that actually units marriage ceremony drone exhibits up for fulfillment.
3. They’re secure and environmentally aware
This would possibly sound sensible slightly than female, however hear me out: ladies typically bear the psychological load of threat evaluation at occasions.
- Sparklers = hearth threat + potential burns + supervision wanted for teenagers
- Drone exhibits = reusable {hardware} + no hearth + customizable + secure for teenagers
For brides (and moms, and marriage ceremony planners) who’re already juggling a thousand particulars and worst-case eventualities, drone exhibits take away a layer of tension.
4. They’re Instagram-worthy
Let’s not fake aesthetics don’t matter. Weddings are closely documented, closely photographed, closely shared.
A drone present provides you:
- Distinctive content material (not one other sparkler tunnel)
- Shareable moments (visitors filming and posting)
- Skilled footage (the drone present itself is cinematic)
In response to a Collabstr 2023 Influencer Advertising Report, 77% of influencers actively monetizing their content material are feminine.
The subsequent profession in drones: marriage ceremony drone present planners
Right here’s my prediction: inside 5 years, we’ll see a brand new specialization emerge — marriage ceremony drone present planners.
Proper now, most drone exhibits are coordinated by the drone firms themselves or by common occasion planners who deal with company exhibits, sports activities occasions and festivals. However weddings are completely different. They’re emotional, private, high-stress and detail-obsessed in ways in which company occasions aren’t.
{Couples} want somebody who can:
- Assist them brainstorm animations that inform their story
- Information them via storyboarding and voiceover scripting
- Coordinate with venues on logistics (launch websites, viewing areas, insurance coverage)
- Navigate HOA necessities, street closures, climate contingencies
- Sync the present to the marriage timeline
- Handle household opinions and finances constraints
Electrical Sky Drone Reveals, a brother-sister led drone gentle present firm based mostly in Los Angeles, put alone marriage ceremony drone present. Tannaz, the sister half of the corporate, was completely that help in serving to me really feel snug with my animations, and even encouraging me to create a voiceover (which was key in our present’s success).
I can completely see ladies who at present work in marriage ceremony planning, occasion coordination, or artistic companies pivoting into this area of interest. It’s a pure evolution.
How marriage ceremony drone exhibits can turn into the subsequent huge factor
For drone exhibits to actually take off within the marriage ceremony trade, a number of issues have to occur:
1. Drone present firms want to know marriage ceremony tradition
Not all drone present firms are geared up to deal with weddings. Company occasions and theme park exhibits are transactional. Weddings are deeply private.
Firms that “get” weddings — like Electrical Sky Drone Reveals, the brother-sister group I labored with—will thrive. They perceive that {couples} need hand-holding, artistic collaboration and emotional funding. Firms that deal with weddings like simply one other gig received’t succeed on this market.
2. Wedding ceremony venues have to optimize for drone exhibits
Proper now, most venues aren’t arrange for drone exhibits as a result of they weren’t enthusiastic about them after they had been designed. However as demand grows, I anticipate venues to begin selling:
- Favorable airspace classification (Class G is good)
- Designated launch websites with correct buffer zones
- Viewing areas optimized for sky visibility
- Present relationships with drone present firms
Venues that may say “Sure, we are able to accommodate a drone present simply” can have a aggressive benefit.
3. Prices have to proceed dropping
At Electrical Sky, the common price of a marriage drone gentle present is about $15,000–$25,000. Pricing can vary extensively — beginning round $10,000–$15,000 for much less complicated exhibits, and climbing to $50,000+ for productions with greater than 500 drones and extremely custom-made animations.
As extra firms enter the area and {hardware} prices get amortized throughout extra exhibits, costs will drop. When drone exhibits hit the $5,000-$10,000 vary, they’ll turn into accessible to a wider market.
And for what it’s price, prices actually are coming down. Drones just like the UVify IFO (mainly the DJI of sunshine present drones) constantly see value reductions. Plus, new enterprise methods like UVify’s FAB Rental System are additionally making the flexibility to placed on a large-scale drone present extra accessible to small drone gentle present firms.
From The Drone Woman to The Drone Bride
Once I began The Drone Woman in 2013, I by no means imagined that weddings could be the bridge bringing ladies into the drone trade. Nevertheless it makes excellent sense.
Weddings are an $250 billion trade worldwide, in line with information from The Knot. Weddings additionally appear to be constantly rising to be larger and higher than ever. {Couples} need experiences that really feel distinctive, private and shareable. They need their day to replicate who they’re — not what custom dictates (please nobody throw rice at me upon my exit).
And as extra ladies expertise drone exhibits at weddings — both as brides, visitors, or planners — extra will notice: That is one thing I might do. That is one thing I could possibly be a part of.
I spent over a decade being the one girl in drone trade rooms. I’d love nothing greater than to stroll right into a drone present planning assembly in 2030 and see it break up 50/50. Weddings would possibly simply be what will get us there.
Are you a girl who wants assist breaking into the drone present trade? I’d love to listen to from you. Schedule a name with me on Intro.
Are you planning a marriage and contemplating a drone present? I’m comfortable to seek the advice of and join you with the best folks by way of Intro as properly. Let’s make this occur.
— Sally French, The Drone Woman (and now, The Drone Bride)
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