Q&A: Brett deMarrais, CEO, Wedit

We provide fun and affordable wedding videography. 50% people nationally don’t get a wedding video. Video is it – sound can speak to you in a way photos simply cannot.

The problem? Wedding videography is super expensive. Videographers can be invasive, there’s this stereotype of intrusion. At Wedit, we rent Flip cameras through the mail. Guests do the filming. It is your best friend filming you kissing your new bride, not a stranger.

After the wedding, you send the cameras back to us. We host it online, and provide you with clips to post to Facebook, Twitter, Youtube and your blog, instead of a long DVD. This makes it interactive – your friends and family can comment and feel part of it. We also can produce a highlight reel with a song that reflects the experience. And we do it at a third of the cost of a normal videographer. We think candid moments are fun, and are very sharable – it allows the couple to really be reflected in the final product.

We’re working on marketing to get the word out there and build our customer base. You can advertise all you want, but with something so personal, word of mouth is key.

We’re very committed to customer satisfaction. We are dealing with people’s memories on an incredibly special day. If we do our job right, we build a network of evangelists for our product.

I was accepted in to Bizdom U, a business incubator program part of the QuickenLoans family, and launched Wedit through this avenue. Through this program, they walk you through how to cultivate an idea, business plan, marketing, sales, etc. At the end, you give a presentation. If the funding committee likes it, they fund it. Wedit launched at the beginning of October 2010, and has been running for four months now.

In addition to the investment, there is a mentoring component to Bizdom U. They provide you with office space – a prerequisite is that you agree to locate your business in Detroit. You are assigned two mentors to serve on your board of directors. One focuses on helping you launch and the other works for another QuickenLoans family company with expertise in your business’ field.

I’ve always had ideas – as a kid, I was a very rebellious troublemaker. I am motivated by an inner desire to be on my own. I don’t have typical office hours.. I’m young, and I have the opportunity to go big. And If I fail miserably, I have plenty of time to recover. If I succeed I will have created jobs for other people, and be blessed with the opportunity to give back to Detroit, a place where people love to work. The sense that I can do that for someone else is a huge motivator.

It is a part of the learning experience. In my program, I have access to tons of other entrepreneurs and get to talk to them about their experiences. Almost every entrepreneur had at least one catastrophic failure or boneheaded mistake. And when things go wrong –it’s exciting to be able to adapt.

I studied general studies. I did it because I’m interested in so many things, which is great for entrepreneurship – I get bored easily. This path gave me a great overview of everything. I was so interested in so many things and I was able to fulfill my interests under the auspices of a world-renowned school.

In general? I get super amped about new ideas. Novelty. Brainstorming. Passionate about creating, and about pursuing creative ideas.

Brainstorming has to be one of my favorite activities. I pull my mentors in a room, and we just go. We outline the problem and set the initial goal, and fill the space in between. You can often find me creating personas for our clients for marketing ideas. I love these exercises because they are non-judgmental, and no idea is good or bad. After the session is done, we pare-down the best concepts from there.

I really like the social scene. We are within driving distance of Chicago, a great city. I go to Chicago and hang out, but it’s really the same as Detroit. I visit friends and they are hanging out with the same group they grew up with – why not do it in Detroit?

When you go out in Plymouth, Royal Oak, Detroit.. there is a huge age range after college, which definitely develops a sense of diversity. There are great concerts, and some of the best venues. Our sports venues are amazing – we have so many resources in this region.

The number one thing I cannot emphasize enough is how ridiculous the range of opportunities is. When you’re talking about Detroit, you’re talking about a blank canvas. It is all about how you frame your viewpoint. If you’re a business owner, you have the opportunity to buy up buildings and do whatever you want with them. You can build a five story adult playhouse with trampolines if you want – downtown real estate is not available anywhere else in the country like it is in Detroit.

There’s also a booming bohemian and art community. We have urban farming, how cool is that? Sure we have problems, but those are just opportunities with infinite solutions. What you can do here cannot happen anywhere else because you can do whatever you want here.

I don’t get it when the business community bashes Detroit. If you are an entrepreneur, you look at a city like this and recognize how many unmet needs there are, and go from there.

Don’t be afraid of Detroit. Some people have a really bad impression, and there is more to the city than just that square block of Cheli’s, the Fox Theater and Comerica. Park. In fact, there is a ton more. Detroit has this kind of gritty vibe – I encourage people to get down there and just drive around. Learn more than what you grew up with and you will no doubt have a greater appreciation for the city. People are really happy to see you, and there is an incredible energy. Come experience the vibe.

For more information on Wedit, visit http://www.wedit.com

For more information on Bizdom U, visit http://www.bizdom.com