FOUNDATIONS TO SUCCESS
The VA Business Growth Programme - Self Study
Being a brilliant VA is one thing. Knowing how to build and grow the business behind being a VA is another.
Maybe you're brand new and wondering how you're actually going to find those first clients.
Or maybe you've been a VA for a while, you've worked with clients and know you're good at what you do... but finding the next one still feels far more unpredictable than you'd like.
Perhaps you're relying heavily on referrals, unsure how to market yourself, questioning your pricing or trying lots of different things without really knowing what you should be focusing on.
Foundations to Success gives you the framework to build a VA business that is strong, sustainable and actually works for YOU.
From your offers and pricing to marketing, sales, systems, client experience, boundaries and growth, you'll work through the business foundations that help you stop winging it and start making more confident decisions about where your business is going.
No fluff. No trying to copy what every other VA is doing. Just practical support, tools and training you can work through at your own pace and come back to whenever you need them.
Who is Foundations to Success for...
Foundations is designed for VAs at different stages of business, because you don't suddenly stop needing strong foundations once you've landed a few clients.
IF YOU'RE NEW TO THE VA WORLD
You've decided you want to build a VA business... but now you've realised there's quite a lot more to it than being good at admin, tech, social media or whatever service you're planning to offer!
You might be wondering:
What should I actually offer?
Who do I want to work with?
What should I charge?
How do I find clients?
What do I need to have in place before someone actually says yes?!
Foundations gives you a clear roadmap so you're not trying to piece your business together from 427 different Facebook posts, freebies and Google searches.
IF YOU'RE ALREADY RUNNING A VA BUSINESS
You've already proved you can do the work.
You may already have clients, or have worked with clients previously, but perhaps growth still feels a little unpredictable.
Maybe you're relying heavily on word of mouth.
Maybe you have capacity but aren't sure how to fill it.
Maybe your pricing no longer makes sense.
Maybe your offers have evolved but your messaging hasn't.
Or perhaps you're busy working in everybody else's business and haven't given your own enough attention.
Foundations helps you review what's working, identify what needs strengthening and build a business that doesn't rely on simply hoping the next enquiry appears.
Because getting clients is important. But so is making sure the business you build around those clients actually works.
Maybe you’re…
Just getting started and unsure what to focus on first
Working with clients but not earning what you expected
Unsure how to position or price your services
Showing up online but not attracting the right enquiries
Relying on word of mouth and hoping the next client appears
Juggling everything without clear systems or structure
If you're nodding along to any of those, you don't need to rip everything up and start again.
You probably just need to strengthen the business underneath it.
Imagine your VA business felt like this…
You’re clear on what you offer and confident in how you price it
The right clients come to you (and understand your value)
Your business runs with structure, not stress
You know exactly what to focus on to grow
You feel in control of your time, your income, and your direction
You're building a business that supports the life you wanted when you became a VA in the first place.
That's what we're building inside Foundations.
Introducing The SUCCESS Framework
7 MODULES covering the business behind being a VA
Inside Foundations to Success, I'll take you through my SUCCESS Framework - the framework I've created around the areas I believe VAs need to understand to build and grow a successful business.
You can work through it from beginning to end if you're starting from scratch, or dip into the areas you need to strengthen if you're already established.
And because you get lifetime access, you can come back whenever your business reaches a new stage.
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Module 1: Set Your Foundations — Get clear on what you're actually building and why!
Inside this module, you’ll:
1. Get clear on your why, values, and vision
2. Define what success looks like for you (not Instagram)
3. Set healthy boundaries to protect your time and energy
4. Build confidence and self-belief from the start
Because there's very little point building a “successful” business that you bloody hate running!
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Module 2: Understand Your Offers & Audience — Create services and pricing that attract better clients and higher-value work.
You’ll learn how to:
1. Define your services clearly (without overcomplicating things)
2. Get confident with pricing and packaging
3. Identify your ideal client (without feeling boxed in)
4. Position yourself so clients understand your value
So when someone asks what you do, you can actually tell them without giving them a list of 37 random tasks!
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Module 3: Craft Your Brand & Content — Become known for what you do so clients recognise your value immediately.
Inside this module:
1. Clarify your brand values, voice, and message
2. Create a consistent online presence across platforms
3. Understand what content actually matters (and what doesn’t)
4. Build confidence showing up online
You don't need to become an influencer. You DO need potential clients to know you exist.
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Module 4: Create Seamless Systems — Put the processes behind your business in place so you're ready when the clients arrive.
You’ll be guided through:
1. The full client journey: enquiry → onboarding → offboarding
2. Essential tools and systems for VAs
3. Creating professional processes that save time and stress
4. Running your business like a CEO, not a chaotic freelancer
Because “OMG somebody wants to work with me, what do I send them now?!” isn't the onboarding process we're aiming for 😂
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Module 5: Elevate & Expand — This is where we get into marketing your business and creating opportunities for growth.
You’ll explore:
1. Marketing strategies that feel aligned (not salesy)
2. Delivering an exceptional client experience
3. Time management and sustainable growth
4. Preparing for future expansion
Because being good at the work won't automatically bring clients through the door.
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Module 6: Strengthen — Getting clients matters. Keeping good ones matters too.
This module helps you:
1. Review offers, pricing, and boundaries
2. Improve client retention
3. Reflect, refine, and reset regularly
4. Strengthen your foundations before scaling
Your business will change as you grow. What worked when you had one client might not work when you have five.
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Module 7: Scale — And if you reach the point where you want to grow beyond doing everything yourself, we'll explore what that can look like too.
You’ll learn about:
1. Long-term vision and growth planning
2. When (and if) to bring on associates
3. Different scaling paths available to VAs
4. Building a business that supports your life, not runs it
Scaling isn't compulsory. Building the business YOU want is the goal.
Learn from people who know their stuff
I've also brought in brilliant guest experts to teach the things I don't pretend to be the expert in!
You'll get access to 9 additional pre-recorded expert training sessions.
Jo Ellis – Breaking Through Imposter Syndrome
Mindset is everything when it comes to building a business and it’s often the thing that holds VAs back the most. This session alone can be a real turning point.
Fiona Green – The Soul of Copy & The Science of Copy
Knowing what to say, and how to say it, is essential when marketing your services. Across these two sessions, you’ll learn how to communicate your value clearly and how to write copy that feels authentic (not salesy).
Leanne Smith – Canva Tips & Tricks
You don’t need to be a designer to create a professional brand and Leanne will show how you can utilise Canva for your business.
Helen Tudor – The Ultimate Guide to Getting Leads from LinkedIn
LinkedIn can be a powerful platform for VAs when used correctly and you will learn how to utilise this platform for your business, without feeling icky!
Kerry Boland – Design Your Sales Strategy & The Golden Thread to Client Retention
Sales doesn’t have to feel awkward or uncomfortable, but it does need a strategy. Kerry breaks this all down for you in these 2 amazing sessions. Sales, strategy and retention — all covered.
K&K Legal – Essential Legal Foundations to Protect Your VA Business
Running a business means protecting it properly and this session covers everything you need to know for your VA business, from contracts and agreements to how to protect yourself and your clients.
Lara Smith – How to use AI as a VA
AI is becoming an increasingly important part of online business and VAs who understand how to use it confidently and ethically will stay ahead.
Everything You Get Inside Foundations:
The Complete Success Framework - 7 self-paced modules guiding you through every stage of building your business
9 Guest Expert Training Sessions - Sales Strategy, Mindset & Imposter Syndrome, Canva Tips, Copywriting for VAs, Finding Leads on LinkedIn, Using AI as a VA & Legal Essentials for VAs.
Done-for-you Templates & Workbooks - saving you time and stress.
How-to Video Library - showing you exactly how to set up and use different systems.
Unlimited access - including all future updates, resources, and new sessions.
By the end of Foundations, you’ll have:
✔️ A much clearer idea of the VA business YOU want to build.
✔️ Clearer services, pricing and positioning.
✔️ A better understanding of how to market yourself and create client opportunities.
✔️ Systems and processes to help you deliver professionally.
✔️ Stronger boundaries and a better understanding of your capacity.
✔️ Strategies for keeping great clients as well as finding new ones.
✔️ The tools and knowledge to make better decisions as your business grows
Most importantly, you'll understand that being a VA and running a VA business are two different skill sets.
Foundations helps you build the second one.
Join Foundations to Success
For the VA who wants the complete roadmap and is happy to take it and run with it.
If you're motivated to work through things independently and want practical training, tools and resources showing you what to focus on, Self-Study gives you everything you need.
FOUNDATIONS (SELF-STUDY)
£397
or 4 x £109
✔ 7 Module Success Framework
✔ Guest expert trainings
✔ Templates & resources
✔ Lifetime access
✔ All future programme updates
Over £3000 worth of training, support and resources!
Want to build your business with me instead?
Want more than Self-Study?
Sometimes knowing what to do isn't the problem.
Actually doing it, knowing what to focus on next and having someone there when you get stuck is.
That's why I also run the Foundations Growth Group - my three-month small-group experience for VAs who want to build their businesses with me and a small group of other VAs alongside them.
You'll get everything inside Foundations, PLUS live business growth sessions, implementation and hot-seat sessions, feedback, accountability and ongoing support as you put it all into practice.
Unlike Self-Study, the Growth Group isn't open all year round. We start together in small cohorts at selected points throughout the year.
NEXT INTAKE: October 2026
Hi, I'm Gemma
I don't just teach people how to build VA businesses. I still run one every day.
I started my own VA business in 2022 with zero clients. Within just over a year I'd become fully booked and started growing a team of associate VAs.
Today I run Gemma Howarth Virtual Business Services, a working VA agency supporting businesses across everything from day-to-day business support to tech, marketing and operational support.
Which means I'm still dealing with the realities of running a VA business now.
Enquiries. Pricing. Capacity. Client relationships. Boundaries. Systems. Sales. Team management. Deciding whether a potential client is actually the right fit. Working out whether something is profitable. And occasionally wondering how one “quick little job” turned into seventeen other things 😂
Foundations is built from that experience.
I want to help you understand the business behind being a VA, because that's the part I had to figure out when I started, and it's the part I see so many brilliant VAs struggle with.
You don't need to build an agency like mine.
You don't need to want a huge business.
You just need to build one that works for YOU.
Let’s turn your vision into reality.
I honestly can't thank you enough for the last 6 months - even when I got derailed by personal circumstances you were still there for me. You've helped me find my confidence - not only in my abilities but in the need to reach out for support. Thank you so much!
Beth Evans, Red Kite HQ
Gemma has been teaching and mentoring me as a VA for a year now and I can’t recommend her enough. She is so motivating and knowledgeable. Gemma is always full of suggestions of how to improve my business, how to network and she keeps me on track to achieve my goals. I always feel fired up after speaking with her and it’s clear she really cares about her students. Gemma is a fantastic person to work with and to learn from and I feel very lucky to know her.
Natalie
Frequently Asked Questions
I’m brand new. Is this too advanced for me?
No. Foundations to Success is designed for VAs at the beginning as well as VAs who are already established.
If you’re new, it will help you build your business properly from the start, so you’re not relying on trial and error.
I already have clients. Will this still help me?
Yes. Many VAs reach a point where they have clients, but their offers, systems, pricing or structure need tightening up.
This programme helps you reset, strengthen and improve what you’ve already built.
How quickly do I need to complete it?
You don't.
Foundations is completely self-paced and you have lifetime access.
You can work through it intensively, take one module at a time or return to individual sections as your business grows.
Do I get lifetime access?
Yes. You get unlimited access, including future updates, resources and new sessions.
Ready to build the business behind being a VA?
You don't need to have everything figured out.
You don't need a perfect website, thousands of followers or another qualification before you're allowed to take your business seriously.
But you do need to understand how to build the business around the service you're brilliant at providing.
Foundations to Success gives you the framework.
Join today for £397 and get instant lifetime access.
Click below to join us...
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