The Magic of IRL

Inbal Claudio
  • 5.0 (21)
  • Entrepreneurship

Behind the Scenes of the Events, Retreats, and Communities Female Founders Build What if your next breakthrough didn't come from another launch, but from the room you're brave enough to create? Hosted by community strategist and membership expert Inbal Claudio, The Magic of IRL explores how in-person experiences, communities, memberships, retreats, and events can become the foundation of a thriving, recurring-revenue business. Each week, Inbal sits down with founders, community builders, and industry leaders who are using real human connection to grow businesses people can't wait to be part of. Alongside inspiring interviews, she'll share solo episodes packed with actionable strategies for turning ideas into experiences, building communities people happily pay for, and creating sustainable revenue without relying on the endless launch cycle. Whether you're dreaming of hosting your first event, building a membership, leading retreats, or creating a community that truly lasts, you'll walk away with practical tools, honest conversations, and the confidence to bring your vision to life. New episodes every Wednesday.

Episodes

  1. 5d ago

    EP 08: Event Host Horror Stories and the Paperwork That Saves You

    If you're hosting events, you need contracts that actually protect you. Venue agreements, vendor terms, speaker agreements, attendee waivers. Contractista has a whole collection built for events, written by a lawyer, ready to use. 40% off the event collection with code MAGIC contractista.com/collections/events A man once asked an event host to go get him a fork. She was in a full ball gown, holding a microphone, about to walk out and run the whole thing. That's one of eight stories in this episode. Inbal and Haley Westfall asked the internet for event host horror stories and got an indoor tornado inside a convention center, an influencer who locked herself in a bedroom for an entire paid trip, a giveaway winner who dislocated her kneecap mid-celebration, and a retreat attendee who came out of an ice plunge with no memory of getting in. Recorded in bed, in another country, mildly unhinged. Underneath the chaos: why your liability waivers matter more than your aesthetic, how to hold a room together while it's falling apart, and why you need other hosts in your corner. Listen wherever you get your podcasts. Takeaways Why liability waivers matter more at a breathwork-and-ice-plunge retreat than almost anywhere elseHow to run a room and manage a crisis at the same time, when you’re the only one who can do bothThe vague phrase on your registration page that causes most attendee disappointmentWhy “I don’t have a co-founder, but I have my quad pod” is a business strategy, not a consolation prizeWhat to do when a vendor confirms and then backs out two weeks beforeWhat attendees never see when they look at your ticket price and do the mathThe one ask you should never make of a host who’s about to take the stageWebsite: www.inbalclaudio.com Instagram: www.instagram.com/inbalclaudio LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/inbalclaudio Magic of Hosting Workshop: https://calendly.com/inbalclaudio/events-workshop The IRL Effect Course: https://xoxoinbi.circle.so/checkout/the-irl-effect - Use code MAGIC10

  2. Oct 21

    EP 07: How to Host a Mastermind Dinner for Women Founders with Alisha Kumar

    Thinking about hosting a dinner for founders in your community? Alisha Kumar, founder of Good Time Media and The Founder's Table, shares exactly how she hosts curated mastermind dinners for women founders in cities across North America. We get into how she structures the night, why every table is capped at 20 women, how she went from $125 to $475 tickets, and what one dinner really costs to host (hint: way more than you think). She also shares why she stopped partnering, how she decides when to cancel a city, and where The Founder's Table is headed in 2027: money talk, exits, and building wealth together. In this episode How Alisha filled her very first event with a line out the door, through influencersThe structure of a Founder's Table dinner, from arrival to hot seats to dessertWhy your ticket price decides who shows upThe minimum number of seats she needs before a dinner makes senseHow she seats guests so friends don't sit togetherWhy she greets every single guest by name at the doorWhat to do after the dinner so the connections keep goingAbout the guest Alisha Kumar is the founder of Good Time Media, a marketing agency helping brands scale through paid acquisition, retention strategy, and full-funnel marketing infrastructure. She also created The Founder's Table, a curated mastermind dinner experience and network for women founders building serious companies and long-term wealth through trusted relationships. Connect with Alisha Alisha's InstagramGood Time MediaThe Founder's TableWebsite: www.inbalclaudio.com Instagram: www.instagram.com/inbalclaudio LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/inbalclaudio Magic of Hosting Workshop: https://calendly.com/inbalclaudio/events-workshop The IRL Effect Course: https://xoxoinbi.circle.so/checkout/the-irl-effect - Use code MAGIC10

  3. Oct 14

    EP 06: From a 12-Woman Dinner to Sold-Out Events with Kristina Bartold

    Kristina Bartold's first event was a dinner for 12 women in an Italian restaurant basement, and she lost money because she did the math wrong. Today her High Vibe Women events sell out at 200+ women, twice a year. Recorded IRL in front of a live room, this conversation covers how she filled her first big event when speakers didn't sell tickets, the "sell the next event from this one" strategy behind 100+ tickets sold in a single week, and the $22 membership she refused to let die until her community told her what they actually wanted. What you'll learn Why speakers don't fill rooms, and what doesHow personal invitations and "shaking trees" sold a first 100-person eventHow to build FOMO so every event sells the next oneWhy the membership pivot from $22 to $77 brought in five times the membersHow to think about ROI on the events you attend, and why the seat can beat the stageBuilding a thicker skin for the criticism that comes with hostingAbout Kristina Kristina Bartold is the co-founder of The Social Snippet and High Vibe Women. She helps entrepreneurs and small businesses grow their communities using social media, podcasting and events. She spends most of her days recording episodes of the Community podcast, coaching business owners, and hosting events for local female entrepreneurs through High Vibe Women. Resources High Vibe WomenCommunity podcastKristina on InstagramWebsite: www.inbalclaudio.com Instagram: www.instagram.com/inbalclaudio LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/inbalclaudio Magic of Hosting Workshop: https://calendly.com/inbalclaudio/events-workshop The IRL Effect Course: https://xoxoinbi.circle.so/checkout/the-irl-effect - Use code MAGIC10

  4. Oct 13

    EP 05: Ask Inbal | Real Friends Pay: Turning the Business On in a Friendship-First Community

    “Friendship first, business second” is how I run everything. But what happens when the bill is due or prices go up? A listener asked how I handle those conversations when my clients see me as a friend, and my answer might surprise you. In this quick solo episode, I break down the two kinds of friendship in my business: friendship as my strategy for meeting people, and the friendship that actually makes a community work (spoiler: it’s not with me). Plus why my real friends are always the first to buy, share, pay on time, and tell me the truth. In this episode: Why I walk into every room looking for a friend, not a clientThe honest truth about being “friends” with every member (mom of three, remember?)Where the real secret weapon lives in a communityWhy real friendship makes money conversations easier, not harderWebsite: www.inbalclaudio.com Instagram: www.instagram.com/inbalclaudio LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/inbalclaudio Magic of Hosting Workshop: https://calendly.com/inbalclaudio/events-workshop The IRL Effect Course: https://xoxoinbi.circle.so/checkout/the-irl-effect - Use code MAGIC10

  5. Oct 7

    EP 04: From One Dinner to an Annual Event: How Haley Westfall Built The Table

    My business bestie Haley Westfall is in the room, and we are spilling all of it. The voice notes we usually keep to ourselves are finally on the airwaves, including the part nobody posts about: the stress before the magic. Haley got rescue-flighted into entrepreneurship after losing her corporate job twice, built Collab Culture with her lifelong best friend (45 plus signups in the first 72 hours), and then launched The Table on top of it. But the story that will stick with you is year one of her live event. She was unhinged-confident she'd sell 250 tickets. She sold 70. She cried most of February, went upside down on money, and then found out that the very thing she was most scared of was actually her superpower. We get into pricing, raising your rates without flinching, inviting the boys to the table, stripping an event back to bare bones, and why your feet are not in concrete. What you'll take away Why Haley and her best friend "selfishly" built a community for themselves, and how that became the whole businessThe real pricing journey: $45 and $55 memberships to a $89 signature tier and a $189 CEO Round Table, and how surveying her people drove every changeWhat happened when the math ain't mathing three weeks out from her first live event, and how she talked herself (and 70 guests) through itWhy smaller rooms keep winning, and how nobody ever mentions the balloons or the decorHow she made year two work with a venue sponsorship and a bare-bones build, and what's changing for year threeFind Haley Instagram: @thehaleywestfall Free resource: the Connection Compass, her personally vetted, application-based database of must-attend events and must-join communitiesThe Table Experience Live returns for year three in February 2027This episode is brought to you by Contractista If you're hosting events, you need contracts that actually protect you. Venue agreements, vendor terms, speaker agreements, attendee waivers. Contractista has a whole collection built for events, written by a lawyer, ready to use. 40% off the event collection with code MAGIC contractista.com/collections/events Website: www.inbalclaudio.com Instagram: www.instagram.com/inbalclaudio LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/inbalclaudio Magic of Hosting Workshop: https://calendly.com/inbalclaudio/events-workshop The IRL Effect Course: https://xoxoinbi.circle.so/checkout/the-irl-effect - Use code MAGIC10

  6. Oct 2

    EP 01: One Had the Numbers. The Other Had the Magic.

    Two and a half years. Four different developers. Six launch delays. A platform that grew to 4,000 women from all over the world, with 40 to 50 of them live on Zoom every single week. Then I opened a paid tier and almost nobody bought. This first episode of The Magic of IRL is the story of why I shut that platform down on purpose. You'll hear what happened when I started something tiny, once a month, in person here in Orange County. I'll tell you how I got 20 women into that first room with voice notes to total strangers, with no list and no algorithm. And you'll hear why the exact same ask that got me crickets from 4,000 people worked in a room of 20. If you've got an idea for something you want to host, and it's been sitting in your notes app for months, and you're terrified nobody will show up, come sit with us. You're in the right place. Hit follow so you don't miss what's coming. Friendship first, business second. IN THIS EPISODE Why 4,000 members and 40 to 50 women on weekly Zoom calls still added up to crickets when the paid tier openedThe reframe that changed everything: "4,000 names is not 4,000 relationships"How the first Business & Collab filled with no list and no algorithm: voice notes to strangers, introducing myself at local markets, and following up on every single referralWhy the same paid ask that flopped online worked in a room of 20Why turning off a six-figure platform was the best business decision I've ever madeWebsite: www.inbalclaudio.com Instagram: www.instagram.com/inbalclaudio LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/inbalclaudio Magic of Hosting Workshop: https://calendly.com/inbalclaudio/events-workshop The IRL Effect Course: https://xoxoinbi.circle.so/checkout/the-irl-effect - Use code MAGIC10

  7. Oct 2

    EP 02: How Events Solve Almost Every Business Problem

    I had 4,000 women in an online community. When I opened a paid tier, almost nobody joined. Then I got 20 women in a room, and that room turned into a membership, a coworking space, a retreat, this podcast, an annual summit, and my best friends. This is the follow-through on what I promised you at the end of episode one: hosting in-person events is the best business decision you will ever make. It all comes down to two things, trust and staying top of mind. You'll hear how one event a month became a membership, how the women who kept the conversation going in the parking lot led me to open The Clubhouse OC, where referrals actually come from, and why friendship first, business second isn't a cute tagline. It's the business model. Then I give you your homework. You do not need a bigger audience. You need a room. IN THIS EPISODE Why 20 women in a room did what 4,000 online couldn't: online you're asking strangers to care, but in the room they already showed upAn event is not the end goal, it's the front door: one monthly event became a weekly event, and the weekly event became a membershipWhy members stay: people don't stay for your content, they stay for one another, and nobody cancels on their friendsWhere referrals really come from: being in their inbox every week, in person with them, and in their cornerYour homework: pick a date in the next 30 days and invite six women, one at a timeWebsite: www.inbalclaudio.com Instagram: www.instagram.com/inbalclaudio LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/inbalclaudio Magic of Hosting Workshop: https://calendly.com/inbalclaudio/events-workshop The IRL Effect Course: https://xoxoinbi.circle.so/checkout/the-irl-effect - Use code MAGIC10

  8. Oct 2

    EP 03: Retreats That Actually Make Money with Mari Milenkovic

    Mari Milenkovic has taken founders to Sicily and Lake Como, hosted 500 person events, and run meetups in four cities. She also scouted Catalina for a day trip, took one look, and walked away. In this episode she breaks down the actual formula she uses to build an experience, and it works the same whether she has six days in Italy or seven hours in Orange. We get into the three part structure she designs around, the care package she mails before anyone gets on a plane, why seven days is one day too long, and the real numbers on whether a retreat makes money. If you have ever thought about hosting a retreat, a day trip, or even a dinner, this one is a playbook. What we cover The formula behind every experience she builds: an activity you do with your hands, a visit to something a founder built, and a meal to tie it togetherWhy she thinks about an experience in three parts, and why the last moment matters more than the firstEverything that happens before a guest arrives, from the mailed care package to the snacks already in the roomHow she filled her very first retreat, and who those women actually wereWhy she moved from Sicily to Lake Como, and how travel logistics changed the saleThe honest answer on retreat profitability, including the one that broke evenWhy she scouted Catalina and said no, and the one thing about a location that makes it an instant passHow she finds a local collaborator in every city and borrows their excitementAbout Mari Mari Milenkovic is a serial entrepreneur, exited founder, and marketing strategist who has helped thousands of female founders grow their businesses through strategies that align with their vision and directly impact their bottom line. As the founder of With Mari, she specializes in creating momentum through clarity, building systems and strategies that support intentional, aligned growth. She hosts an annual retreat in Lake Como and runs founder field trips across Southern California. Find Mari Instagram: @withmari.co (she loves a voice memo)Website: marimilenkovic.comNext Lake Como retreat: May 21 to 26, 2027. Get yourself to Milan, she takes care of the rest.This episode is brought to you by Contractista If you're hosting events, you need contracts that actually protect you. Venue agreements, vendor terms, speaker agreements, attendee waivers. Contractista has a whole collection built for events, written by a lawyer, ready to use. 40% off the event collection with code MAGIC contractista.com/collections/events Website: www.inbalclaudio.com Instagram: www.instagram.com/inbalclaudio LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/inbalclaudio Magic of Hosting Workshop: https://calendly.com/inbalclaudio/events-workshop The IRL Effect Course: https://xoxoinbi.circle.so/checkout/the-irl-effect - Use code MAGIC10

  9. Sep 30

    Welcome to The Magic of IRL

    Hi, I'm Inbal! I built a big online community, and then I took it offline. Best decision I ever made. The Magic of IRL is the podcast for female founders who want to host in-person events, memberships, retreats, and communities that feel magical and actually make money. Every week I'm sitting down with the women behind the most magnetic rooms I know to talk about how they fill the room, price it, and keep people coming back. No funnels, no algorithm talk. Just the real stuff that happens when people show up. Hit follow so you don't miss an episode, and come hang out with me. Website: www.inbalclaudio.com Instagram: www.instagram.com/inbalclaudio LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/inbalclaudio Magic of Hosting Workshop: https://calendly.com/inbalclaudio/events-workshop The IRL Effect Course: https://xoxoinbi.circle.so/checkout/the-irl-effect - Use code MAGIC10

  • 9 Episodes

5
out of 5
21 Ratings

About

Behind the Scenes of the Events, Retreats, and Communities Female Founders Build What if your next breakthrough didn't come from another launch, but from the room you're brave enough to create? Hosted by community strategist and membership expert Inbal Claudio, The Magic of IRL explores how in-person experiences, communities, memberships, retreats, and events can become the foundation of a thriving, recurring-revenue business. Each week, Inbal sits down with founders, community builders, and industry leaders who are using real human connection to grow businesses people can't wait to be part of. Alongside inspiring interviews, she'll share solo episodes packed with actionable strategies for turning ideas into experiences, building communities people happily pay for, and creating sustainable revenue without relying on the endless launch cycle. Whether you're dreaming of hosting your first event, building a membership, leading retreats, or creating a community that truly lasts, you'll walk away with practical tools, honest conversations, and the confidence to bring your vision to life. New episodes every Wednesday.

Information

  • Creator
    Inbal Claudio
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    9
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 The Magic of IRL
  • Show Website
    The Magic of IRL

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