Guest Blog: Marie-Louise O'Neill, Branding Expert In Residence

Our second guest to take over the BIPC Northamptonshire blog is our expert in residence, Marie-Louise O'Neill. Marie-Louise is the founder of Lovely Evolution, offering branding, design and training services to help small business owners build brands they’re proud of… with a little help from Canva. Marie-Louise has worked with BIPC Northamptonshire for a number of years, and as well as being our branding expert in residence, she will be speaking at Start-up Day 2026 which is taking place at Kettering Library on Tuesday 24th November 2026.

In this guest blog, Marie-Louise gives tips on how to avoid the monster client and find the unicorn client!

How to spot the monster client

Nobody tells you when you start a business that not every client is a good client. Saying yes to the wrong ones doesn’t just cost you time and money…it can cost you your confidence, too. I know, because it happened to me. And that’s a much harder thing to recover from.

My monster client story

A few years after starting Lovely Evolution, I took on a client that didn’t feel right from the start. They were saying all the right things on the discovery call. I clearly explained my design process, which relies on collaboration and client involvement throughout. Everything was agreed, I provided the estimate and secured the deposit.

All seemed fine, but there was a little niggle at the back of my mind.

I talked myself into it anyway. The money was useful. I thought I could make it work.

By the end of the project, I was questioning my work, my decisions and whether I was actually any good at what I do. And I’d been running a successful business for years and was already a seasoned graphic designer by this point. One bad client had me wondering if I should quit it all.

And there were signs. A tone in an email or two. A few comments on our video calls that questioned my process and my expertise. I noticed every red flag, but chose to see the project through to completion.

That experience taught me a valuable and painful lesson. It forced me to get clear on who I was, what I was worth and who I actually wanted to work with.

Meet the monster client

Most difficult working relationships come down to a mismatch rather than malice. It’s a case of the wrong fit, the wrong timing or the wrong expectations. And what might be my Monster Client might be your perfect client, and vice versa.

Here’s what the Monster Client can look like in practice:

●       A vague brief, but very strong opinions about the outcome.

●       “I’ll know it when I see it”,  and they never know it when they see it.

●       Every revision is urgent. Every email arrives on Friday at 4.45pm.

●       They question your expertise while asking for your expertise.

●       Premium results, bargain prices, and they wanted it last week.

●       The brief keeps changing, but the budget never does.

●       And the biggest one: something felt off in the first conversation, but you ignored it.

The red flags to watch for

The Monster Client rarely arrives waving a warning sign (wouldn’t that be helpful if they did!). Here are the signs I’ve learnt to take seriously:

●       They push you to lower your price. It’s one thing to have a budget and ask what’s possible; it’s another to keep pushing for more for less without recognising the value of your work.

●       They’re slow to respond during the enquiry stage, then expect an immediate turnaround once they’ve booked.

●       Every previous supplier “just didn’t get it”.

●       They make you feel as though you need to justify your prices, your process or your very existence.

●       They’re rude to people. How someone treats others can tell you a lot about how they might eventually treat you.

Red flags are rarely invisible. We see them. We just convince ourselves we’re imagining things, or that we need the work too much to say no. That’s an easy trap to fall into, especially when you’re just starting out.

Your gut can be telling you something. The trick is learning to listen to it.

What a monster actually costs you

There’s a real cost to saying yes to the wrong person:

Time: Monster clients take far too much of it with endless revisions, conversations that go round in circles and emails you agonise over before sending.

Money: All that extra time means you can end up undercharging. That cheap job you said yes to? It worked out at about £3 an hour once everything was added up.

Headspace: Monster clients can become little gremlins lurking in your brain. You dread opening your inbox. You lie awake replaying conversations at 2am. And that mental load doesn’t stay neatly contained in your working day. It spills over into everything else.

Confidence: The worst cost of all. You start doubting your decisions, wondering if you’re the problem and shrinking yourself to manage someone else’s behaviour.

I can promise you, none of it is worth it.

Now meet the unicorn client

Enough about monsters. Let’s flip over to the positive.

The Unicorn Client is the person who makes you remember why you started your business in the first place. They come to you with enthusiasm and trust, brief you clearly, then let you get on with it. They give feedback that is constructive and kind. They pay on time without being chased. They tell their friends, and their friends are exactly like them.

Working with Unicorn clients doesn’t just produce better work. It makes you braver, more creative and more you. Because you’re not wasting your energy managing the relationship, you’re spending it on the work that lights you up.

Think about the best client experiences you’ve ever had. That feeling? That’s what you’re aiming for. And remember, even great clients can have busy weeks, change their minds or need a bit of guidance. The difference is the trust, respect and communication you build together.

How to attract more unicorns

Get specific about who you want to work with. Not just their demographics or the usual ideal-client profile. Think about their values, attitude and how they communicate. Write it all down.

Let your brand help with the filtering. If your brand is vague and generic, you may attract vague and generic enquiries. Be clear about who you help and how in your messaging, and the right people will be more likely to find you.

Trust your instincts at the enquiry stage. That first conversation can tell you a lot. Remember, the potential client isn’t just deciding whether you’re right for them. You’re deciding whether they’re right for you, too. You’re allowed to say you’re not the right fit. You’re allowed to say no.

Know your non-negotiables. Have a short mental list of automatic nos. When something matches that list, you’ll know what to do, cutting out some of the second-guessing.

Here’s a simple place to start: write down three warning signs you don’t want to ignore next time. Keep the list somewhere you can see it when a new enquiry comes in.

Final pearls of wisdom

You get to choose who you work with. That might not feel true when you’re new to business or going through some lean times.

You might say yes to a Monster or two along the way. Most of us do. But the sooner you start paying attention to the signs, the sooner you can start building a business full of Unicorns.

Because the clients you choose to work with shape so much: the quality of your work, your bank balance, your mental health and how much you enjoy getting out of bed each day.

Choose well. Trust your gut.

And whatever you do… don’t feed the monsters!

Have you ever had a Monster Client experience? What did it teach you about the clients you want to work with?