In this short talk, Mike Michalowicz (author of Profit First) explains a marketing tactic he calls the “deer in headlights” response. He argues that when bookkeepers (or any service‑based business) introduce themselves with a generic title—e.g., “bookkeeper”—prospects instantly tune them out because the label is familiar and unremarkable. To capture attention, he advises creating a novel, descriptive label such as “profit professional” that forces prospects to pause and ask, “What does that mean?” This moment of confusion is the desired “deer in headlights” reaction, giving the seller a chance to explain a unique value proposition. Michalowicz emphasizes that being different, not merely better, is the key to winning customers, and the strategy applies beyond bookkeeping to any business that risks being boxed into a generic category.
Chapters
Hi, guys. Mike Michalowicz here, author of Profit First. And I just came back from a meeting with a bookkeeper and wanted to share something that I tried to teach them. It took a few iterations, but I think they finally got it. I call it the deer in headlights. It's actually the response you want. Now, you don't have to be a bookkeeper. This applies to other businesses. But for God's sake, if you're a bookkeeper, you want the deer in headlights response. This is what it is. When you're talking to a customer and you are telling them or prospect and you're telling them what you do. If you tell them the category of the business you're in, if you say you're a bookkeeper, they will zone you out. They will not pay attention because you're going into this generic box of something they already know. If I tell you I'm a public speaker, you'll say, oh, geez, I know what public speakers do. And maybe you won't roll your eyes at my face, but in your mind you'll say, I know a public speaker does, and your mind will instantly tune me out. And same thing if I say I'm a bookkeeper. When you hear the word bookkeeper, your prospects and customers will tune you out. You have to come up with a new label and get that deer in the headlights response. So if you tell them you are a profit professional, people are going to look at you and go, what does that mean? And they won't tune you out. That's the lesson I want to share. Come up with a different professional label for what you do. No longer say you are a bookkeeper. Tell people that you are a profit professional or some other term that points to what makes you different. You see, that's the lesson. When you get a response from a prospect going and giving you a deer in headlights, that means they haven't put you in the box of the generic competition and they're giving you an opportunity to explain how you're different. And never forget this. Being better than the competition is not being better, but being different is far better because customers buy different. Get the deer in the headlights response. It will serve you very well.
