Welcome to another episode of the podcast that teaches you how to be a ridiculously good virtual assistant.
Today we are going to talk about something every VA needs to do – but most skip right over – and that’s market research.
Today’s Quote: “The aim of marketing is to know and understand the customer so well the product or service fits them and sells itself.” – Peter Drucker
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Connect with Tracey D’Aviero, VA Coach and Trainer
Episode Notes:
Market research. Target market.
Now, before you zone out and think, “Blah blah blah, Tracey, that sounds boring,” hear me out. Market research isn’t just for big companies with budgets and focus groups. It’s one of the smartest and most confidence-building steps you can take as a VA business owner.
Because when you understand who your target market is – what they care about, what they struggle with, and what they’ll happily pay for – you stop guessing. You stop throwing out random offers and hoping something sticks.
Instead, you start building a business that actually fits your people.
Let’s dig into what market research really is, how to do it simply, and how it helps you find your target market as a VA.
Why Market Research Matters
Let’s start with the why we struggle to get clients.
When you first start out as a VA, it’s easy to fall into the “I’ll help anyone who needs admin support” trap. You just want clients – any clients – and you think being open to everyone will help.
We think anyone who needs something we can do is a good client, and that’s the only thing we can focus on – I just need one client.
But here’s the truth: trying to serve everyone makes it harder to attract anyone.
Market research helps you narrow down who you actually want to work with, and who wants to work with you. These are two really important things to know, and decide in your VA business.
It’s not about excluding people. It’s not about turning someone down who you are talking to.
It’s about marketing.
It’s about getting clear on where your skills, experience, and interests line up with someone’s specific needs – and where there’s money being spent to solve those needs.
When you do this well, you stop feeling desperate for clients. You start showing up confidently, because you know who you’re talking to and how you can help them.
That’s the mindset shift: you’re not begging for work or pounding the pavement hours a day looking for anyone to say YES. You’re solving problems for a defined group of people who value your help.
What Market Research Actually Looks Like
So, what does “market research” look like in a VA business?
It’s really just gathering information about your potential clients. It’s learning about what they do, what they struggle with, what their goals are, and what kind of support they need.
You can do this in a few different ways. I’m going to tell you a bunch of ways you can do this, and then I’m going to talk about the one that I KNOW works best.
Conversations: Talk to people! Reach out to business owners in industries you’re curious about. Ask them about their day-to-day, what tasks they love or hate, and how they currently get help.
Online Research: Look in Facebook groups, LinkedIn, Reddit threads, or industry-specific forums. Pay attention to what people are asking for, what they complain about, and what they seem to need help with.
Surveys: Create a short survey with 5–7 questions. Send it to your network or post it in relevant groups. Keep it simple. You’re just looking for patterns and pain points.
Job Boards or VA Platforms: Read through job postings, even if you’re not applying. Notice what types of help people are hiring for, how they describe their needs, and what rates they offer.
Your Own Network: Think about people you already know. Do you have contacts in real estate, wellness, coaching, trades, or creative fields? Those connections can help you learn what that market values.
The key here is to gather the right information, NOT guess at it. The way to do that? Ask the right people!
You’re looking for themes: repeated frustrations, goals, or desired outcomes that your clients have that you can support them with using your VA skills.
The Three Stages of Research
Let’s break this down into three stages to make it easy to follow.
Stage 1: Exploration
This is where you brainstorm industries or types of businesses that interest you.
Ask yourself:
- What kinds of businesses do I already understand?
- What industries excite me or feel aligned with my values?
- Who could genuinely benefit from what I already know how to do?
For example, maybe you’ve worked in health and wellness, or you’ve supported a coach before, or you just love working with creative people. Write down those as possible audiences.
Stage 2: Investigation
Now, start learning about them.
Find out:
- What challenges are common in that industry?
- What kinds of support tasks do they need?
- What’s missing from the help they already have?
- Are they hiring VAs? If so, for what roles and budgets?
The goal is to understand demand – are people in that market actively looking for help like yours?
Stage 3: Validation
This is where you test your findings.
You might talk to a few people in that industry to confirm what you’ve learned. Try a small project or retainer package to see if there’s a good fit. Then adjust your messaging or packages based on the feedback you get.
Validation is where you make sure your idea is grounded in reality – not just a hunch.
Finding Your Target Market Through Research
Once you’ve started to do some digging, you’ll start to notice patterns.
Maybe you see that wellness coaches keep mentioning how much time they spend scheduling clients or posting on social media. Or real estate agents talk about losing leads because they can’t keep up with follow-up emails. Or online course creators say they need help managing students and materials.
Those patterns are your gold.
They tell you what problems exist, what solutions are needed, and where people are already spending money, or would willingly spend money to fix the problem. THAT is how you find your target market.
Your target market isn’t a random niche you pick out of thin air. It’s the group of people who already need and value exactly the services or support you offer.
And when you understand them, you can create packages and messaging that make them think, “This VA totally gets me. That’s who I need to work with.”
That’s what leads to great clients – and great clients lead to consistent income.
How Market Research Builds Confidence
Now let’s talk about confidence, because as you know it’s one of my favourite topics.
When you don’t know who your audience is, you second-guess everything. Or whatever you post doesn’t work.
But if you are second-guessing yourself, you might wonder what to post, how to price your services, and whether you’re even doing the right things. If you don’t know these things, you have work to do! Research work.
Because once you’ve done your research and you understand your market, you get clarity. You get so clear in who you help that doing your actual marketing becomes simple. And easy.
And you come across as a confident VA because you know who you help and why it’s important to them.
You’ll be able to speak directly to your ideal clients in your marketing, choose services and packages that solve their real problems, and set prices that reflect the value you bring.
You’ll stop saying, “I don’t know where to find clients,” because you’ll know exactly where your people hang out and how to connect with them.
It’s empowering. And it’s something every confident VA does, whether they realize it or not.
If in the last month you have said “I don’t know where to find clients”, you need to do market research. Plain and simple.
If you’re listening and thinking, “Okay, Tracey, I hear what you’re saying but where do I start?”
Here’s where you start:
- Pick three industries or audiences you’re curious about. They could be areas where you already have experience, or ones you simply find interesting.
- Start gathering data for one of them this week. Look up groups, browse job postings, or reach out to someone for a 10-minute chat.
- Create a simple spreadsheet or notebook to track what you find. Write down what people struggle with, what kind of help they want, and what they’re willing to pay.
- Compare your findings. Which group seems most aligned with your skills, your values, and your income goals?
That’s your starting point for your target market.
You don’t have to get it perfect right away. Like any research, this is a process. You’ll refine it as you grow, and that’s normal.
Let’s circle back to today’s quote: “The aim of marketing is to know and understand the customer so well the product or service fits them and sells itself.”
That’s exactly what market research helps you do, but only if you take it beyond the surface level.
Now. I told you I would give you some ideas on how to do market research. And I told you that I would share what I think is the best method. So here we go.
You can spend hours scrolling through Facebook groups or sending out surveys, but nothing replaces real conversation.
Talking directly with people in your potential market is where the gold is. That’s where you discover what they truly struggle with, how they describe their challenges, and what kind of help they’re actually willing to invest in.
And like I said off the top: most VAs shy away from that step. They worry about bothering people or not knowing what to say. But the VAs who build real confidence, and real businesses, are the ones who actually have those conversations.
Do You Need Help?
If you’re ready to get past the hesitation and learn how to connect with your target market in a way that feels natural and comfortable, I can help you with that.
This is one of my favorite things to work on with my private coaching clients. Helping you make real market research connections so you can identify your niche, your audience, and your value with confidence and clarity.
So if that’s something you know you need, let’s talk about it.
You can connect with me at YourVAMentor.com/links.
Let’s chat about where you are right now, and what you need to do to move forward.
Because once you understand your target market on a personal level, everything about your business starts to click: your pricing, your messaging, your confidence, and of course, your results.
Don’t be shy to reach out for a chat. I’m here to help. It’s the only reason I’m here at all, to help you become a ridiculously good virtual assistant.
That’s all I’ve got for you this week. I’ll see you next time!