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In this week’s episode of ILA On Air, Anastasia sat down with Athena Dobson, founder of Girls in Property, to explore a topic that is becoming increasingly visible across the property and finance industry.
Community building.
From online memberships and networking groups to events and educational spaces, more professionals are trying to create communities around shared interests and business growth.
But as this conversation made clear, building a successful community is about far more than launching a platform or gathering people into a group.
It requires trust, consistency, purpose and a genuine commitment to the people inside it.
Here is what Anastasia took away from the discussion.
One of the strongest themes to come out of the conversation was that communities only work when they solve a genuine need.
Athena explained that Girls in Property was born after she attended a networking event where only three out of forty-five attendees were women.
Looking for female-led spaces in property and finance, she found very few.
That gap became the opportunity.
For Anastasia, this highlighted an important principle.
Strong communities are rarely built because someone wants to “start a community.”
They are built because there is a clear need that is not currently being met.
The most successful spaces solve a shared challenge or create access where access previously felt limited.
Without that foundation, engagement often fades quickly.
Another key insight was that the paid membership itself came much later.
Before launching the Girls in Property membership, Athena built an audience through content and events.
The podcast came first.
Then free conversations.
Then, in-person events.
Only once trust had been established did the membership community follow.
For Anastasia, this reinforced an important point about audience building in property and finance.
People rarely commit financially to spaces they have no relationship with.
Trust needs time to develop.
By consistently giving value before asking for commitment, Athena created an audience that already understood the purpose behind the community before it formally existed.
This made growth more sustainable and more aligned.
The conversation also explored the operational reality behind building a successful community.
From the outside, memberships can appear relatively simple.
A platform.
A monthly fee.
A few calls or events.
In practice, they require constant attention.
Athena spoke openly about the demands of maintaining engagement, responding to members, organising events, improving systems, and ensuring that members feel genuinely supported.
For Anastasia, this was one of the most practical takeaways from the episode.
There is a significant difference between launching a community and sustaining one.
Anyone can create a group.
Creating one people actively want to remain part of requires continuous effort, evolution and emotional investment.
A particularly honest part of the discussion focused on self-awareness.
Athena explained that community building suits her because she naturally enjoys regular communication, connection, and helping people.
That level of responsiveness matters.
Communities often require emotional presence as much as practical organisation.
For me, this highlighted an important reminder.
Not every business owner should build a community.
And that is not a weakness.
Some people thrive through hosting events.
Others through writing, teaching or creating content.
The key is understanding what aligns naturally with your strengths rather than forcing a model because it appears commercially attractive.
The strongest communities are usually led by people who genuinely enjoy the work required to sustain them.
Another major theme from the conversation was the importance of intentional connection.
Inside Girls in Property, new members are introduced directly to relevant people based on location, goals and shared interests.
This creates immediate connection rather than passive membership.
For Anastasia, this reinforced that communities are not built through numbers alone.
They are built through relationships.
People stay where they feel recognised, supported and connected to others.
Scale without connection creates noise.
Connection creates belonging.
And belonging is what sustains communities long term.
The discussion also touched on the systems behind community management.
Athena shared how tools like Circle, automation workflows, and structured onboarding systems help create consistency as the community grows.
Technology creates efficiency.
But it does not replace leadership.
This reflected a wider truth across property finance.
Systems are only ever as strong as the people guiding them.
Technology can support delivery, but trust, culture, and energy still come from human leadership.
That remains the real foundation of any successful community.
The overall insight from this episode is that communities are not quick wins or easy recurring revenue models.
When done properly, they become long-term infrastructure for growth, support and connection.
The professionals who build them successfully tend to focus less on scale and more on service.
They listen carefully.
They evolve consistently.
And they genuinely care about the people inside the space they are creating.
Anastasia observed that this mirrors many of the strongest businesses in property finance itself.
The best outcomes are rarely built quickly.
They are built carefully, consistently and through trust over time.
This article is based on Season 3, Episode 2 of ILA On Air, where Anastasia is joined by Athena Dobson to explore community building, trust, systems, and what it really takes to grow meaningful networks in property and finance.
You can listen to the full episode here:
https://open.spotify.com/episode/2R1pK8grR764DFbtU19G5j?si=oujEbFUERvW700_a_6HCKA
If you are building a business, brand or network in property or finance, this episode offers a practical perspective on what it takes to create a community that lasts.
Making the complicated simple.
This is not advice from iLA, it is simply a helpful summary of our conversations on ILA On Air, our educational podcast for the property finance community, making the complicated simple.
