Struggling to Land VA Clients? The Brutal Truth You Need to Hear
Let’s talk about something most people in the Virtual Assistant industry avoid: the part where you’ve done everything you think you’re supposed to do… and still haven’t landed a client.
You’ve created your Instagram. You’ve made the logo. Maybe you’ve even applied for a few jobs. But you’re still waking up, refreshing your inbox, and wondering why nothing is working.
It’s frustrating. It’s exhausting. And worst of all? It starts to feel personal.
This post isn’t here to sugarcoat anything. It’s here to give you the truth—and the strategy—you need to finally land clients and start building a Virtual Assistant business that gives you real freedom.
My First Client Was a Fluke—And That Was the Problem
When I launched my Virtual Assistant business, I got my first client in under 24 hours. I didn’t cold pitch. I didn’t post on social media. I didn’t build a website or send out a perfectly polished proposal.
I got an automated email from Odesk—what’s now called Upwork—saying my account was going to expire unless I submitted three proposals. So I sent them. Quickly. With zero expectations. I barely even remembered signing up for the platform.
One of those proposals landed. I got a paying client. And not just any client—someone who paid enough that I seriously started considering leaving my 9-5. I thought, this is it. I’ve cracked the code. If it was that easy, the rest of my client roster will fill itself.
But that “easy” win was the worst thing that could’ve happened to me. Because it made me think I had a system… when I didn’t.
After that? Four full months of nothing. No new clients. No new income. Just me staring at job boards, refreshing my email, and wondering why I couldn’t recreate that first win.
And here's the thing: It wasn’t because I was lazy. I was doing things every day. I was “working” on my business. But the truth was—I had no idea what I was actually doing. I didn’t know how to identify good-fit clients. I didn’t know how to present myself. I didn’t have a message or a method or even a list of people I wanted to work with.
I thought I had a process. But all I really had was a lucky break. So when that luck ran out? I had no backup plan. No system. No repeatable way to create income. Just vibes, busywork, and blind hope.
I spent weeks fiddling with my brand colors, rewriting my Instagram bio for the hundredth time, and designing Canva graphics that no one ever saw. I kept convincing myself I was “building” my business when in reality, I was avoiding the part that actually mattered—finding and landing paying clients.
And because I wasn’t getting results, I started internalizing the silence. Maybe I’m not good enough. Maybe I don’t have enough experience. Maybe I should just go back to a regular job where someone else tells me what to do.
But the problem wasn’t me. The problem was my lack of strategy—and my dependence on luck.
Once I realized that, everything started to change.
You Don’t Need More Skills—You Need a Strategy
This is one of the biggest traps I see women fall into—especially inside my Virtual Assistant mentorship spaces like VA 365 and the VA Accelerator. They believe that if they just took one more Virtual Assistant course, added another skill, or finally chose the “right” niche, things would start working.
But that’s not the problem. Nine times out of 10, you already know enough to get started.
What you don’t have is a clear, repeatable strategy to find and land clients.
Let’s break this down.
You might think you’re being consistent—showing up on Instagram, tweaking your bio, applying to the occasional job. But most of what you’re doing is tactics, not strategy.
Strategy means you have a plan that connects the dots. It means you know exactly:
Who you’re trying to reach.
How to connect with them.
What to say when you do.
How to guide them from stranger to paying client.
That’s a strategy. Posting random tips to crickets on Instagram and hoping someone DMs you? That’s not strategy. That’s just hoping something clicks.
And that’s what keeps you stuck. You start questioning your skills. You wonder if you need another certification or to pick a niche so specific it excludes everyone. You start thinking you’re the problem… when really, your strategy (or lack of one) is what’s not working.
You’re not underqualified. You’re under-supported.
You don’t need another degree to become a Virtual Assistant. You don’t need to burn another 10 hours a week consuming free content. You need to know what steps actually move the needle—and how to do them consistently.
The truth is, most Virtual Assistant business owners aren’t missing VA skills training. What they’re missing is clarity. They’re missing a real, day-to-day plan that tells them exactly how to spend their time to create income. And let me be clear: If you don’t know what to do to land a client this week, you don’t have a strategy.
That’s the part most VA courses skip. They teach you how to do the work—how to manage inboxes or create SOPs or schedule social content. But they don’t teach you how to run a business. They don’t teach you how to sell. They don’t teach you how to be the one in charge.
That’s what I had to learn the hard way. After that first “lucky” client, I spent months doing busywork instead of business-building. And I kept telling myself I was working—because it looked like work. I was posting, writing, creating. But none of it was connected to a plan. And none of it was leading to new clients.
A real strategy is what changed everything.
If you're ready to stop guessing, spinning, and wondering why nothing's working, it's time to stop asking, “What should I do next?” and start asking, “What plan am I following—and is it built to get results?”
Your First Few Clients Will Be the Hardest—That Doesn’t Mean You’re Failing
We don’t talk about this enough in the VA space. Everyone wants to make it look effortless—like the minute you decide to become a Virtual Assistant, clients should just fall into your lap.
But let’s be honest—landing your first 1–3 clients? It’s going to feel challenging.
Not because you’re doing something wrong.
Not because you’re “not cut out for this.”
But because you’re building confidence and systems from scratch.
You’re learning how to talk about what you do in a way that makes people want to pay you. You’re learning how to ask good questions in discovery calls, how to recognize red flags, how to present your offers in a way that’s clear and grounded and reflects your value.
It’s like going to the gym after years of sitting on the couch. The first few workouts don’t feel good. You don’t see progress right away. But that doesn’t mean you’re not doing it right. It means you’re finally doing it.
This is the part most new VAs never push through. They get on one call, maybe two. The client doesn’t book. The follow-up falls flat. And suddenly, the self-doubt kicks in: Maybe I’m not cut out for this. Maybe I should wait. Maybe I need another course before I try again.
But what’s actually happening is this: you’re learning. You’re getting reps in. And every time you put yourself out there—every pitch, every proposal, every call—you’re getting better.
There’s nothing wrong with slow progress. What matters is that you don’t stop before the results start showing up.
Here’s the thing: If you’ve only gotten on one or two calls since launching your VA business, you haven’t failed. You just haven’t finished. You’re still at the beginning—and beginnings are awkward and unpolished and necessary.
Business growth isn’t linear. It’s trial, adjustment, and resilience. The Virtual Assistant business strategies that work for you won’t appear overnight. They’ll evolve through practice. Through messing up. Through making tweaks and trying again.
If you want to become a Virtual Assistant who books premium clients and builds a business that pays well and feels good, you have to keep showing up when it’s boring, quiet, or uncomfortable. Because that’s where the real growth happens.
So if you’re in that early stretch—where you feel like you're doing everything and nothing’s happening—I want you to hear this clearly:
You’re not failing. You’re building. And if you stay in the process longer than most people are willing to, you will win.
What You Should Do Next
Let’s shift your focus for a second.
I want you to stop obsessing over how to attract clients. I want you to start thinking like someone who knows how to go out and find them.
There’s a big difference.
Attracting clients is passive. It’s waiting. It’s hoping someone finds your post or clicks your link. Finding clients? That’s intentional. That’s you putting yourself in front of real people and saying, “Here’s what I do and how I can help.”
If you’re sitting around wondering when someone is going to notice your Canva graphics or stumble across your brand-new portfolio, that’s a sign you’re still in attraction mode. And attraction mode is where most new VAs stay stuck—because it feels safe. You don’t risk hearing “no” when you’re quietly posting and hoping.
But if you want to actually land clients and make money, you have to start acting like someone who’s building a business—not just curating a brand.
That means outreach. That means visibility. That means choosing to be seen—even before you feel “ready.”
Here’s what I want you to do: Make a list of 10 potential clients. Go through their websites. Read their Instagram captions. Skim their podcast titles. Ask yourself: What are they working on? Where are they overwhelmed? What’s missing in their systems, content, or customer experience—and how could I help?
This is not about spamming people. This is about training yourself to notice opportunities. It’s about sharpening your eye for fit. Because when you can recognize what makes someone a good match for your skills, you stop wasting time pitching random people and start building a roster that actually works for you.
You don’t need to send all 10 pitches today. But pick one. Craft a message that’s personal, clear, and helpful. Show them you’ve paid attention. Suggest something specific you can support them with—something they didn’t even realize was a problem yet.
You don’t need a massive audience. You don’t need perfect branding. You need conversations. Real ones.
This is how you stop waiting and start building momentum. Not someday. Not when your logo is better. Not when your Instagram finally clicks. Today.
Start acting like the business owner you said you wanted to become. That’s the next step. And you already know how to take it.
The Brutal Truth Is… It’s Not You
You’re not struggling because you’re lazy. You’re not stuck because you’re unqualified. You’re spinning your wheels because you don’t have a system. That’s it.
Without a strategy, even the smartest, most talented Virtual Assistants will stay invisible. And without structure, it’s easy to second-guess every move, undercharge, and waste your energy on tasks that don’t bring in clients.
But the good news? That part is fixable.
You can learn how to build a client-finding system. You can get Virtual Assistant training that actually focuses on business—not just skills. You can start implementing real VA business strategies that bring in income consistently.
You can stop building your business around scraps of free content and start following a clear, proven path—one that actually works for your schedule, your personality, and your life.
And you don’t have to do it alone.
Sign up for my email list where I send out encouragement and tips on how to start and grow your Virtual Assistant business—right to your inbox every week.
I’ll help you stop guessing, get strategic, and finally build the business you’ve been trying to piece together on your own. This isn’t about working harder. It’s about working smarter—with the right support behind you.
You’re already a business owner. Now it’s time to start acting like one.
