$60K on the Side with this Niche Virtual Service

June 30, 2025 |

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Hannah-Morgan-from-Heron-House-Management

Ever feel like you need a personal assistant but can’t afford one?

Hannah Morgan found a way to help busy families get that support without the big price tag. She started Heron House Management, a virtual service that handles all the stuff families need to do but never have time for.

Think about it: remembering when summer camp sign-ups open, booking doctor appointments, planning family trips, or just keeping track of everyone’s schedules. Hannah’s team does all of that – from their computers.

Her business made $60,000 last year and keeps growing. And the best part is she works totally remote and helps families get their time back.

Listen to Episode 680 of the Side Hustle Show to learn:

How to find a business idea that nobody else is doing
Why monthly packages work better than hourly rates
Simple marketing tricks that actually bring in customers

The Mental Load Problem Hannah Solves

Hannah’s lightbulb moment came when her sister mentioned “cognitive labor” — all the invisible work of anticipating, planning, researching, and managing that typically falls on one person (often women) in a household.

“When we have the invisible labor of mental load, that’s the things that are never really seen and often not talked about. It goes unnoticed, it goes unappreciated, and it goes uncompensated,” Hannah explains.

The difference between traditional virtual assistants and Hannah’s approach is the level of anticipation and thought partnership. Instead of just executing tasks you assign, her house managers proactively manage entire projects.

Example: Summer Camp Planning

Traditional approach: You research camps, compare schedules, handle registration, and manage logistics yourself.

Heron’s approach: You tell your house manager your kids’ ages, interests, budget, and availability. They map out the entire 11-week summer, slot in various camps, handle registration and paperwork, coordinate logistics, identify gaps in care, and even suggest when to take that vacation you’ve been talking about.

How Virtual House Management Works

Heron-House-Management-Website

The Service Model

Hannah’s team works entirely remotely, serving as fractional house managers for busy families. They handle:

Project management for complex family logistics
Vendor research and scheduling (dentists, contractors, etc.)
Event planning and coordination
Travel planning and booking
Administrative tasks and systems creation
Gift tracking and holiday management

Who They Hire

Hannah specifically recruits:

Teachers
Project managers
Former house managers

These are people who understand the unspoken stressors of family life because they’ve lived them.

They don’t wait to be told what to do. They anticipate what’s needed. And because they grasp the nuance of family dynamics, they’re able to offer personalized support that feels more like a trusted partner than a virtual assistant.

The Business Model Breakdown

Pricing Structure

Hannah offers packages ranging from $450 to $900 per month, structured as set hour blocks rather than on-demand service.

This creates:

Predictable income for the business
Consistent hours for team members (all independent contractors)
Budgetable expenses for clients
Better long-term relationships

The Agency Model

From day one, Hannah set client expectations that they’d work with trained team members, not directly with her. This avoided the “freelance trap” of trading time for money and allowed for scaling from the start.

Marketing Strategies That Actually Work

1. Facebook Groups and Reddit

Hannah found her initial clients through conversations in working parent Facebook groups and Reddit communities. Rather than promotional posting, she engaged authentically in discussions about mental load and family challenges.

Surprisingly, many male clients come from Reddit, while female clients typically find her through Facebook groups.

2. School Fundraiser Donations

One of Hannah’s most effective strategies: donating 3 to 5 hour “gift certificate” service packages to local school silent auctions. Benefits include:

Exposure to target demographic (busy parents)
Low-lift marketing that gives back to community
“Sampler platter” for potential long-term clients
Word-of-mouth from other auction attendees

3. Weekly Podcast Content

Her podcast “De-Stress the Nest” features 10-minute episodes perfect for school drop-off commutes.

And each guest brings their audience, which helps expand marketing reach organically. Popular episodes include systems-heavy topics like creating SOPs for your personal life.

4. Word-of-Mouth Amplification

Hannah notes that satisfied customers become powerful advocates: “A happy customer who feels like their problem has never been recognized but now is being solved is often the most satisfied customer.”

Creative Revenue Streams

1. Digital Downloads on Etsy

Hannah sells the spreadsheet templates she creates for clients on Etsy, including:

School comparison worksheets
Gift tracking systems
Project management templates
Summer planning tools

2. B2B Employee Benefits

Positioning house management as a corporate benefit for high-demand workplaces. Think law firms or high-growth companies—anywhere talented employees are losing time (and sanity) managing personal life logistics.

Her first B2B client was an electrical supply company.
Companies see it as a win for reducing stress, attracting talent, and boosting retention.
Hannah’s now exploring hour-sharing models where employers buy a pool of hours employees can tap into as needed.

Learn more about team benefits for your company.

3. Training Course for Aspiring House Managers

Developing a course to teach others how to start similar businesses in their communities, recognizing that reach will always be geographically limited.

Scaling Insights

Team Building Philosophy

“Everyone on my team is better at what they do than I ever would be, and that’s why I hired them.” Hannah shared.

She walks the talk, too — using her own house manager for personal life, an operations manager to lead the day-to-day, a podcast manager for content, and trusted contractors for specialized work.

The Automation Breakthrough

Hannah’s bookkeeper pointed out that manual processes wouldn’t scale.

Anytime you’re automating something, you’re not just saving yourself time and money, but you’re also eliminating opportunities for human error.

Now, platforms like HoneyBook and QuickBooks keep billing, invoicing, and team tracking streamlined — laying the foundation for real scale.

Non-Compete Protection

With team members handling direct client relationships, Hannah knew contracts had to do some heavy lifting. Every hire signs a non-compete and non-solicitation agreement to protect the business from client poaching and ensure long-term trust on both sides.

Tools & Resources

Project Management:

Asana (free version available)

Business Operations:

HoneyBook – billing and contracts
QuickBooks – bookkeeping

Content & Marketing:

“De-Stress the Nest” podcast
Facebook parenting groups
Reddit communities
School fundraiser donations

Digital Products:

Etsy store for spreadsheet templates
Google Sheets for template creation

Mistakes to Avoid

1. Waiting for Clients to Come to You

Hannah didn’t rely on platforms or marketplaces. She found her first clients through Facebook groups, Reddit, and real conversations with working parents.

2. Offering On-Demand Services

Pay-as-you-go sounded flexible—but led to unpredictable income and poor client retention. Monthly packages gave her team stability and helped clients commit.

3. Not Setting Boundaries

Clear expectations around scope, communication, and preferences are essential. Hannah’s onboarding includes questions like “How far are you willing to drive to the dentist?” so her team can truly take things off clients’ plates.

What’s Next for Hannah

Hannah’s expansion plans include:

Moving digital products from Etsy to her own website
Developing the house manager training course
Exploring more B2B partnerships
Creating additional products around mental load conversations
Scaling the core service to serve more families

Her bigger mission: “Reimagining what’s possible when it comes to how you deal with your mental load and your stress.”

Hannah’s #1 Tip for Side Hustle Nation

“Just keep going.”

Key Takeaways

The Niche Selection Framework: Look for services wealthy people pay for and find creative ways to make them accessible. Hannah took traditional house management and made it fractional and virtual.

Position Yourself as the Specialist: By focusing exclusively on family project management and mental load relief, Hannah became the obvious choice for her specific problem rather than competing with general VAs.

Design for Recurring Revenue: Monthly packages create predictable income and deeper client relationships compared to one-off projects.

Start with an Agency Mindset: Setting expectations from day one that clients work with trained team members (not the founder directly) enables scaling and prevents the freelance time-for-money trap.

Market Where Your Customers Already Gather: Instead of creating content to attract an audience, Hannah joined existing communities where her ideal clients were already discussing their problems. She found success in Facebook parenting groups and Reddit communities discussing mental load and family logistics.

Episode Links

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