You probably hear a lot about mid-level donors, and that’s for good reason. For most nonprofits, these donors represent a major opportunity for short-term and long-term growth. It’s a revenue source that’s largely untapped. The potential is there, waiting to be realized.

So, who are mid-level donors? Defining mid-level donors will vary for different nonprofits, of course, depending on the size of your nonprofit. But in general, for many nonprofits, mid-level donors are those who give about $1,000 to $9,000 a year.

Another way to look at it comes from Sean Triner of Moceanic. The Pareto Principle tells us that 80 percent of your donations come from about 20 percent of your donors. That 20 percent consists of about 4 percent for major donors and about 16 percent for mid-level donors. Keep in mind, this is a rough guideline. It won’t work out exactly this way for every charity, but it gives you an idea of where to start in determining who your mid-level donors are.

Defining your mid-level donors is a good first step. Because the real problem is that most nonprofits tend to overlook these important donors. That’s because they give too much to be considered typical annual fund donors, and at the same time, they give too little to be considered typical major donors. They’re the “middle child” in fundraising – the ones with loads of potential who nevertheless go unnoticed.

And that’s too bad. Because when nonprofits cultivate and communicate with mid-level donors, it’s possible to:

• Generate game-changing growth. Remember, mid-value and major donors give almost 80 percent of your revenue. But for many nonprofits, mid-level donors are underperforming. The potential is there for them to give more.
• Create a class of donors who can be cultivated to move up to major giving.
• Provide a stream of promising leads for planned giving and legacy gifts. Along with mid-level donors, bequest donors represent one of the best opportunities for revenue growth.
• Increase donor retention, since donors who give at higher levels tend to remain more loyal.

Successfully cultivating mid-level donors will require research, data analysis, as well as some means of personal contact, such as telephone calls or even personal donor visits. You’ll want to contact these donors in various ways – ways that correspond to their preferences, of course.

It takes a comprehensive program. But one key to the program is a specialized direct mail appeal. All the analysis and fundraising strategy will come to nothing unless the approach to communicating with these donors is the right one.

In general, mid-level donors are less transactional in their giving than most annual-fund donors and far more relational. This is why standard direct mail probably won’t work for them. But specialized direct mail can and will.

What’s needed is a bigger, better, more strategic direct mail pack – not simply a fancier version of a typical annual-fund mailing.

Mid-level donors need to be approached in a unique way that demonstrates the impact, stewardship, and engagement they expect. In general, they respond best when there’s a specific program or initiative, when they receive plenty of information, and when they’re acknowledged as being part of a group of select supporters.

This specialized mail pack has higher production values than you’d use for regular donors. It often has a 9 x 12 envelope. It has a multiple-page letter, with copywriting that conveys the right tone and copy voice for higher-dollar donors. It’s on better-quality paper. It’s highly personalized throughout. It has multiple components – brochures, lift notes, inserts, and so on – that provide plenty of information, both in terms of factual information and emotional content. And it has a full-page reply device that not only presents the ask but reinforces the reasons to give. This is the kind of direct mail appeal that will tend to cut through the clutter and attract attention.

A pack like this will of course cost more than the mailings you send to regular donors. But to reach mid-value donors and cultivate them, it’s important to focus not on cutting costs but on maximizing revenue. There may be areas in your fundraising where it makes sense to pinch pennies, but not here. A cheap direct mail appeal for mid value donors is likely to fail. But a higher-quality appeal that communicates the exclusivity, personal attention, insider status, and insider information that mid-level donors expect is likely to succeed and generate the revenue you want.