5 Steps to Build a Winning Mid-Level Giving Strategy

Mid-level giving is critical for the financial health of any organization, but very few nonprofits have an intentional strategy for developing personal relationships with the people behind these gifts.

Sadly, mid-level giving tends to fall into an unintentional abyss at many nonprofits.

Why?

As people start to give more, well-intentioned development directors often begin excluding them from some (though not always all) direct mail.

And then... since mid-level gifts usually don't exceed the threshold to land someone on a portfolio, people in this group tend to fall beneath the radar of most major gift officers.

When this happens, people who make mid-level gifts often get removed from all direct mail while also not getting any attention from a development staffer.

At this point, any hope for a relationship with these people usually disappears as connection plummets from a lack of communication from the nonprofit.

There's a sad but true running joke among fundraisers that the best way to get a nonprofit to leave you completely alone is to make a mid-level gift.

How do you keep this from happening to this important group of champions at your nonprofit??

Jeremy Reis has an extensive list to help you improve retention with this group of champions here . However, if you just need a little help getting started, here are a few simple steps I gleaned from him and a few others to help you be more intentional with your mid-level giving strategy:

STEP 1: IDENTIFY THEM

Before you can build relationships with mid-level givers, you have to know who they are.

The amount that determines a mid-level gift will vary, but for most nonprofits, start by looking at anyone with a cumulative annual giving level between $1000 - $9999 in the last two calendar years.

Once you have an initial list, review it for any patterns and consider focusing on people with a higher level of engagement OR people at the lower end of the giving spectrum since they tend to be ignored most.

STEP 2: CONNECT WITH THEM

As with most things in fundraising, the most important part of an effective mid-level strategy is your connection and relationship with the people behind the giving. Before you invite people to take additional steps to increase their ownership of your cause, you have to spend time getting to know them.

Technology can help you scale this some, but the best way to build connection and relationships with the people in this group is through old-fashioned personal communication (phone calls, texts, handwritten notes, personal emails updating them on the impact of their giving, customized videos, care packages, greeting cards, etc.).?

You may not have the capacity to get much in-person time with this group, but don't let that stop you from doing everything else you can to get to know them.

STEP 3: UNDERSTAND THEM

As you build relationships with this group, it's essential to work on understanding why they give.

Do they have a personal connection to the cause? Are they giving from a place of altruism or guilt? What's their motivation?

Once you begin to understand why people give, do not sit on this information.

Learn to communicate the impact of their giving and show appreciation in ways that resonate with their specific motivation.

STEP 4: INVITE THEM

To keep mid-level people in this group from feeling stuck or overlooked, it's important to invite them to take growth steps to help them increase their ownership and involvement with your cause.

As you build these relationships, constantly ask yourself, "What steps can I invite this person to take to help them grow in their understanding or ownership of our cause?"

Can you invite them to participate in an event or service opportunity where they will learn more about your work or the people you serve? Would they like to join an advisory board or committee? Can you provide behind-the-scenes access to some aspect of your work that is not available to the general public?

Inviting people to take growth steps like this helps deepen their connection to your organization and cause while also allowing them to contribute their skills and expertise in meaningful ways that foster a sense of belonging and purpose within your community.

STEP 5: EVALUATE YOUR EFFORTS

Because most nonprofits tend to unintentionally ignore mid-level giving, donor retention at this all-important level is often poor.

As you begin to implement your mid-level giving strategy, make sure you evaluate the impact of your efforts on retention, track giving over time, and use surveys and simple feedback loops to assess satisfaction levels.

Does that feel overwhelming? Try sending some version of this email from Mike Duerksen at Build Good to this group of champions and see what happens.

Evaluating your efforts will help you gain valuable insights from this important group as you seek to deepen their connection with your cause and serve them better in the future.

Building a solid mid-level giving strategy requires patience, effort, and intentionality. However, when done well, your efforts here will pay off significantly over the long term through increased loyalty and engagement.

As you tailor your approach to mid-level giving and provide people with meaningful opportunities to deepen their engagement, you will strengthen their commitment to your cause and cultivate long-lasting relationships.

Keep up the good work friends!

-Michael

P.S. As I researched mid-level giving earlier this week, I felt compelled to share a few additional thoughts that seem obvious to me but feel somewhat missing from the larger conversation around this important, often overlooked, aspect of nonprofit fundraising strategy. If you're interested in my take on that topic, you can find it here .