Survival excursions

[Amansh]

So I've kind of been knocking around the idea of starting a small part time business for overland/survival minded people. What we do as over landers definitely overlaps into the survival aspect. I'd like a second opinion of how well yall think it would work. Say once or twice a month take say two or three groups so 4 vehicles total with maybe 12 people tops including myself and 2 staff. Take people that may be new to the wilderness and teach basic skills and rules to live by while back country. Ex: fire starting, emergency shelter, water purification, food procurement, basic land navigation, star navigation, fishing (traps and trail made tackle) and of course emergency signaling with recovery instruction for stuck vehicles.

Sooooo what do yalol think. Enough people interested in nature or too many city lovers for it to work well?

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[Egan]

People make a living doing this type of thing, you just need to market it properly. I would consider starting with a you tube channel showing what you would do.

 

[ASNOBODY]

I think you should do it. To be honest, you'll probably get a lot of city dwelling nature loving overlanders anyway. Typically those are the kind of people who need that kind of education anyway and are willing to pay for it. Bringing more people into the fold is always a good thing. If you paired it with some kind of wilderness identification information (appreciating the beauty of nature, plants, animals etc.) as well, I think you would get more than just 4x4 enthusiasts.

 

[Amansh]

I think you should do it anyway. To be honest, you'll probably get a lot of city dwelling nature loving overlanders anyway. Typically those are the kind of people who need that kind of education anyway and are willing to pay for it. Bringing more people into the fold is always a good thing. If you paired it with some kind of wilderness identification information (appreciating the beauty of nature, plants, animals etc.) as well, I think you would get more than just 4x4 enthusiasts.

I think your right. I'm going to be bringing a decent camera with me next time I go out so I'll take video and see if I can splice somthing together giving a bit of a taste of what we do. The scenery would be more than enough to entice some people.

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[VCeXpedition]

Besides the very last thing where you said "...and of course emergency signaling with recovery instruction for stuck vehicles", there wasn't a lot of meat there for overlanders, although much of it applies, it also could apply to hikers, wanna-be survivalists, pre-preppers, etc. You could market different things to different groups by bundling different skill classes together to expand your customer base.
I think this is a great idea and I've seen it work regionally very well, but it's easy to saturate a market.

Seems to me the most difficult part as has been mentioned, is marketing yourself and what you do. Youtube, although I have no experience creating anything, I have A LOT of experience watching stuff, is a good interest-generating medium, and for some reason gives some people credibility.

What will you do that is unique and make people want to come to you?
What will you add that they will find of value and recommend their friends to you?
What are your qualifications that create the trust in people that what you are telling them is worth what you're charging?

Go for it, there are these and many more questions I'm sure in your head!

G'luck, Dan

 

[Egan]

I don't know what kind of capital you have but you may even get more people if you supply the vehicles.

 

[Amansh]

I don't know what kind of capital you have but you may even get more people if you supply the vehicles.

Not a bad idea. I've got one ready and another truck I could modify a bit to work. Worst case scenario a fleet would come later. And I use that term loosely. Maybe 4 or 5 total vehicles

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[Egan]

Not a bad idea. I've got one ready and another truck I could modify a bit to work. Worst case scenario a fleet would come later. And I use that term loosely. Maybe 4 or 5 total vehicles

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Try and make them all the same vehicle with matching paint, it would look professional and be a selling point.

 

[Saints&Sailors]

It'd be good to look into insurance for this type of thing - both coverage with your vehicle and also a general liability policy in case something were to happen. Even something as simple as driving one of the customers in your vehicle could make your insurance not valid if you were to get into an accident since you are now using the vehicle as a "work vehicle for hire". Check your insurance contract to be sure and then get some liability insurance for the business. If you're charging people money for something you are responsible for them and have an obligation to them. I'd hate for you to get burned by something outside of your control.

 

[Jeep4venturing]

Good idea

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[GoingCommando]

Reach out to OB member Wanderer351. He is instructor and owner of www.midwestoverlandtraining.com.
He shared a bunch of .gpx routes in my area in another forum. I'm new to overlanding and when I found his web site I sent him an email to find out if he had classes scheduled for the summer that I could sign up for. So, A) I'm somebody that is willing to pay for this kind of instruction, and B) Wanderer351 is somebody already running such a business that I'm sure could give you lots of tips.

 

[Overland-Indiana]

I am gonna play the bad cop on this one.... 1) As previously mentioned get INSURANCE. 2) What do YOU specifically have to offer that others already in this field do not?
3) You HAVE to make what you're doing different than what others are doing, especially different than what people can already learn from YouTube. 4) It has got to be affordable, otherwise you will limit your clientele and price yourself out of the market.

To me, these are things that can be learned for free at Overland meets/trips by fellow Overlanders.... I am not saying don't go for it, if you can make it work then by all means- ROCK THAT MONKEY!

 

[Dennis King]

So I've kind of been knocking around the idea of starting a small part time business for overland/survival minded people. What we do as over landers definitely overlaps into the survival aspect. I'd like a second opinion of how well yall think it would work. Say once or twice a month take say two or three groups so 4 vehicles total with maybe 12 people tops including myself and 2 staff. Take people that may be new to the wilderness and teach basic skills and rules to live by while back country. Ex: fire starting, emergency shelter, water purification, food procurement, basic land navigation, star navigation, fishing (traps and trail made tackle) and of course emergency signaling with recovery instruction for stuck vehicles.

Sooooo what do yalol think. Enough people interested in nature or too many city lovers for it to work well?

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using OB Talk mobile app

I have been gearing up to do the samething when I retire. I will be teaching fire starting and shelter building, What to and what not to eat.