For a while now, I’ve been working at making my entire living from my amateur radio activities. I’ve had some success with my study guides, and I did well with my one-day Tech class at Dayton, but freelance writing for clients still makes up a sizable portion of my income.
I’d love to be able to cut those clients loose, too, but I haven’t been very successful in developing other sources of amateur radio income:
- I tried to buy the rights to publish AC6V’s books after he became an SK, but never heard back from the family.
- I contacted the family of Dave Ingram, K4TWJ (SK), about purchasing the rights to publish his books, but I never got a response from his wife.
- I tried to buy the CW Touch Keyer business after its owner passed, but after three attempts to contact them, I still haven’t heard back from the family.
- I thought that I could make a few bucks by purchasing a quantity of FA-VA4 antenna analyzer kits, building them, and then selling them at hamfests. I bought five of them, and to date, have only sold two. Part of the problem, I think, is that this product is not all that well known.
I haven’t given up, though. Here are some ideas that I’ve come up with recently:
- Teach one-day Tech classes at big hamfests around the country, including SEAPAC, HamCation, etc. If I could get 20 students to sign up at $75 – 100 per student, this could be profitable.
- Teach classes online in a webinar format. Using webinars, I could teach quite a few students and offer General and Extra classes as well as a Tech class.
- Teach some for-pay webinars on relevant amateur radio topics, such as FT8, DMR, etc.
- Develop an online Tech class that I would charge students to take.
- Develop other online amateur radio classes.
- Do webinars/videos that demo a product, then include a link to Amazon that would include my Amazon Associates id. I would get a small commission any time someone purchased the product after watching the video.
- Write more books. At one point, I had gotten No Starch Press interested in having me write a Ham Radio for Hackers book, and I had done a fair amount of work on it before shelving it. I really should resurrect that book. On another topic, every time Gigaparts places an order for my study guides, they ask when I’m going to write a DMR for Dummies book.
- Design my own touch keyers. I started doing some work on this, but then had to devote my time to updating the Tech study guide. I really wanted to purchase the CW Touch Keyer business, though, because they already had an established brand and customer base.
I know that I’m probably a better CW operator than I am a business man, but there must be a way that I can make more money in amateur radio. What do you think? Do you have an idea for an amateur radio product that you think I could produce? How about an amateur radio book that I should write? Or, can you think of an amateur radio service that I could provide?
I’m listening.
Paul Brown says
Dan,
The ‘DMR for dummies’ book would fill a market need.
Those with a Tech license can get on this wonderful new mode and experience the QSOs they would have upon upgrading.
Linking the DMR book to the ARRL strategy for encouraging younger members to join the hobby might extend the possible market.
The ARRL is working on materials to help middle school and high school teachers function as ‘ambassadors’ for the hobby.
Your crisp writing style could help these teachers, ARRL and also those who want to be ‘Elmers’ however do not have the skills to communicate as ‘coaches’ and ‘teachers’.
I personally do not like the ‘dummies’ title, so perhaps a sub-title that links DMR to getting a tech license in a weekend study course followed by a VE session and receiving a DMR radio (they are down to $30 now) could appeal to those middle school and high school teachers and their students.
The demographics of currently licensed Hams does not excite the heart and mind as much as appealing to the next generation of licensed amateur radio operators and being part of a strategy the keeps the hobby going for another 100 years.
I enjoy receiving and reading KB6NU’s Ham Radio Log.
Take care,
Paul AC2UQ
John KD0JPE says
I agree with the comment about the “dummies” title. I think you would be better off leveraging the “No Nonsense” title from your other books. Something like “No Nonsense Guide to DMR”.
Dan KB6NU says
I agree completely. Besides, I’d be sued if I tried to use the Dummies name.
Dave New, N8SBE says
Sounds like you need to trademark “No Nonsense” ASAP.
K3NG says
A friend of mine once gave me a word of advice about trying to make money or a living in amateur radio: “Don’t.”
Hams are cheap.
Dan KB6NU says
He’s certainly right about that, but there are people making money in the business. And, it’s something I enjoy, so I’m going to keep plugging away at it.
Don Keith N4KC says
Dan, as you may or may not know, I write and publish books about amateur radio…four so far. Though they hardly make me a living–I do that with my other books and screenplays–they do sell and, I hope, serve as impetus for folks to join our hobby or explore other aspects of it. In my opinion, the two books you mention would fill a need and might be quite successful even though the subject area is more specific than mine.
Have you considered publishing and marketing them yourself? See the article on my web site at http://www.donkeith.com/on-writing for info on the subject. And visit http://www.donkeith.com/hamradio/amateur-radio to see my amateur radio books.
You write well, obviously have key knowledge to impart, and are motivated. That puts you ahead of 99.9% of everybody else out there! Plus, having heard and worked you on the air before, I can verify that you are, indeed, a good CW operator.
73,
Don N4KC
Dan KB6NU says
I’ve self-published all my books so far.
Steve W8SFC says
I have to disagree about one thing, “Hams are cheap”, well, not if you look at how much they spend on gear and gadgets, and their radios and antennas. The monetary investment in that supports an industry that seems to be thriving at this point.
By emphasizing training and licensing you are working to keep the market demand up. Of all the things I could do with my time at this stage in life, radio is the only one that allows me to contribute to the community while enjoying the work and feeling of being part of something that serves in time of need.
73!
Steve – W8SFC
Bob K0NR says
I had the same reaction. Some hams are cheap, no question. But I also see hams investing a lot of money in equipment and antennas. They will spend money when it provides value to them.
Some of the challenges are: a strong DIY mentality is ham radio causes folks to try to build it themselves (this is a good thing). The maker movement plays into this. Ham radio has a strong culture of sharing…many people try to give back to the hobby without pecuniary interest, so that means money-making enterprises have to compete with “free.” Just look at all of the free info available on the web.
K3NG says
Perhaps my statement was an overgeneralization, but I think hams do tend to be cheap, and rather puzzlingly, selectively. For example, many won’t think twice about spending some kilobucks for a rig or amp, but will complain about $50 (or whatever it is right now) for an ARRL membership.
Ed Sanders says
I recently got my General and have been buying radios for cross band repeat, and for the HF bands. I’m part Scot and cheap. However, in the last few weeks, I’ve spent over $3,000 on gear. But then, also in that time, around $5,000 on Unimog parts and 6 tires.
Cale K4HCK says
+1 to the DMR for Dummies idea. DMR has a steep learning curve. The terminology is confusing and the software even more so. However, once it’s working, there’s a wide world of fun available. I’m sure equal success could be had with DSTAR, All Star, IRLP, etc., etc.
Don Gamble says
Ditto to the DMR book. I enjoyed your book on CW, lots of good info there. Good luck and 73.
Don KG5CMS.
Rob W4ZNG says
Dan, the big problem I see is that there’s a ton of free information out there: internet, local clubs, even on-air. The market’s just flooded. There’s even an amateur author cottage industry springing up around kindle/POD publishing; take for example Peter Parker’s QRP and “99 things” books.
The one thing I haven’t seen though are how-to manuals for specific transceivers. Take for example any of the Yaesu manuals, they’re just a dog’s breakfast of information. Sure, it’s all there, but to work through a basic procedure is to read a little here, skip to there, stumble through instructions for an accessory board you don’t have, jump back to the index, etc. How about a “basics” manual that lays out how to perform common get-on-the-air procedures for several popular “beginner” transceivers like the FT-450D, 857D, etc? They wouldn’t have to detail every esoteric feature, but enough to get somebody rolling.
It’d be a boring, dirty task to write this sort of manual, which is probably why they’re not around. You’d also be at the mercy of product line changes. But… I’ve seen at least two guys drop out of ham radio altogether after being defeated by their 857’s, and the stories of Techs who couldn’t get their Baofengs running are innumerable.
Dave New, N8SBE says
There are the Nifty quick reference guides for many popular radios (I keep the little foldable ones in the back of my handhelds’ pouches, so I can refer to them in the field), and an example of a good book style that treats a radio in chapters oriented to tasks is Fred Cady’s books on the Elecraft transceivers.
W6NIK says
This:
“Teach classes online in a webinar format. Using webinars, I could teach quite a few students and offer General and Extra classes as well as a Tech class.”
Nik – W6NIK
Layne AE1N says
The Year was 1963. With my love for ham radio, I did everything to find a job in Ham Radio to earn a living. I enrolled in a double-degree in Engineering and Physics at the local university. Big mistake ..Higher mathematics was my downfall!. I even applied for a job at the Communications Section of the ARRL. Due to my poor grades, the University “invited” me to take a few semesters off to “reassess my educatonsl goals.”
That placed me before the local Draft Board who was eager to supply bodies to feed the Vietnam war. I enlisted for 4 years in the U.S. Army Security Army with a guarantee of Electronics training. Something I have never regretted!
HAM RADIO IS JUST A HOBBY!
Jeff, KE9V says
I suppose it depends on your definition of “making a living”. There are plenty of hams working at Ham Radio Outlet and other stores. Most of these are making a living. There are ARRL and CQ magazine employees making a living at ham radio. People are making a living in manufacturing gear & equipment – think Elecraft, FlexRadio, MFJ, etc.
But when it comes to those who are “making a living” from freelance writing about ham radio, well, I’d guess you could count those on one hand, if you could find any at all. (I can’t think of even one who isn’t retired from a previous career and drawing a pension or social security).
It’s a tough nut. How-to books have mostly fallen out of favor given that you can learn to do any task in the Universe via YouTube. Ham radio information is already “out there” and every possible subject saturated with free words, audio, and video. To the point that well-written words in our world are worth about a penny a piece. You can’t possibly write enough to make a living at it.
It can be a nice side-hustle as you’ve already figured out, but I can’t see any angle or real world example of how to make an actual “living” at it, but I hope you figure it out!
73 de Jeff, KE9V
Bob K0NR says
Yeah, that YouTube thing. That’s a big factor.
Daniel KC1BRA says
You could write a book on the intersection of UAV’s (drones) and Ham Radio. I find that the information on this subject is fragmented at best. As you probably know many UAV’s require a tech license to operate legally. This is part of what is driving the increase in licenses. A book on the technicalities of constructing systems would be great.
David Book KD7YIM says
Nothing really comes to mind.
For the size of the “entry”/new ham market, there’s plenty of ARRL, Gordon West, hamstudy.org etc etc around and people often borrow their buddy’s study material. The rest of the market is spread pretty thin and Gordo/Eric Nichols/ARRL may be the only ones making money at it. And Gordo is also working the RV and Sailing markets in a high population area.
Many clubs etc object to charging anything like a market rate for classes, they just want new hams “for the good of the hobby” which is great but sure makes it hard to make a living from teaching. My FastClass is $35, has been the same for about 10 years, and the sponsoring entity raised Cain about raising it to $50 although there have been no complaints about the cost and They get the money.
Even consulting to SAR etc groups would be tough as there’s so much volunteer expertise out there!
Dan KB6NU says
I sometimes get requests from search-and-rescue teams to hold one-day Tech classes. Only one so far has ponied up the cash to have me come and teach the class. I’m only asking $500. I don’t think that’s too high, considering that it takes up a whole day of my time, especially when you factor in the travel time.
The team that was able to pay me got the city’s police department to pay for the class. They felt it was worth it to have more qualified SAR team members.
The way I see it, you get what you pay for. I am a very good teacher, and quality costs money. If you don’t value that, then they can try to find someone else to do it or do without.
David says
If the FA-VA4 at least covered 2m it would likely sell better. Sounds good otherwise.
Thor E Wiegman says
I am interested in investing in a company doing business with Amateur Radio. Maybe I could invest in Dan’s? I realize I am commenting on something that is several years old, I wonder how things have gone for you, Dan.
Not that I’m a big investor. But that’s the point, I would like to be one little guy investing in another little guy. What better place to put my investment than into my hobby.
Dan KB6NU says
Hi, Thor…I’m not sure that I need any investment myself, but thanks for the offer. Perhaps someone else is looking for investment?
Ed Sanders says
I make no money directly from Ham radio, but quite a bit because of ham radio, and having two Unimog radio vans. I volunteer at rally and other events, meeting a lot of folks there. I can just go grocery shopping with my setup and folks gather. They all learn about Unimogs, ham radio and Amsoil. The Amsoil business has paid off very well, and even more now as people are getting interested in fuel economy again. Switching all of the lubes in a vehicle to Amsoil increases fuel economy by 8% or so. The business costs very little to get into, and the company has recently started an excellent training program. https://www.amsoil.com/lander/join/?zo=23310