Bringing mid-value supporters closer to the cause

In many charities, mid-value supporters sit quietly in the middle – too generous for standard individual giving, not quite ready for major donor treatment. I’ve spent the last decade building and refining mid-value programmes, and one thing is clear: when you treat this group as a strategic audience in their own right, the results can be transformative.

Across the sector, one trend is becoming increasingly clear: fewer people are giving, but those who do are giving more. This presents both challenge and opportunity. Acquisition may harder but the growth in gift values highlights a growing group of engaged generous supporters ready for a deeper relationship.  But too often, these supporters sit unnoticed in the middle.

The missed opportunity in mid-value fundraising

I started exploring mid-value programmes, I’d guess, over ten years ago. It was a small segment of the individual giving pool – supporters who had either outgrown standard individual giving or those who were no longer meeting the major donor criteria.

We gave them a little extra – as well as their quarterly magazine and the individual giving programme, they received a quarterly four-page newsletter (an opportunity for me to be a bit creative using a template), and one of my favourite things – a handwritten card, whether it is a thank you or a Christmas card. I know, call me old school, but I still love to handwrite (and yes, I mean cursive writing). They probably should have had so much more, but it was all I could do at the time.

These supporters showed loyalty and engagement, not just through the amount they gave, but their longevity and commitment to the cause. And I felt they deserved more – leaving them in the large individual giving programme didn’t feel right, but nor did the leap to the major donor programme which wasn’t right for where they were at.

Some of those supporters did become major donors and others legacy pledgers. Many more felt more connected with the cause – something that may not have happened without the foundations being put in place.

The first programme I developed wasn’t about asking for bigger gifts though. It was about relationship building: giving them a dedicated person they could contact, more meaningful touchpoints, and communications that felt personal, relevant, and valuable to them.

From one-to-many to one-to-few

At its heart, mid-value fundraising should be a one-to-few relationship, not a scaled-down version of major donor fundraising, and not a slightly warmer version of individual giving.

And it can be a challenge to create an approach that feels more personal without creating a strain on resource, another challenge I’ve personally experienced when trying to set one up. What you’ll find is it often gets added onto the workload and programme of one end or the other, not the dedicated resource it truly deserves.

These supporters want to understand the impact, see progress, and know that their generosity matters. They don’t expect bespoke stewardship at every touchpoint, but they do expect communications that feel considered, timely, and meaningful.

Paring back your individual giving materials and making them less ‘marketing-style’ communications – for example, plain A4 outers and additional lift pieces with deeper information to support a higher level of giving, adds minimal impact to these donors.

But, when mid-value fundraising is treated as a strategic investment rather than a tactical layer, it becomes one of the most powerful growth areas for charities.

Done well, mid-value programmes create a sense of belonging.

Done poorly, they feel transactional, generic, and easy to disengage from.

I have found few charities have well-defined audience-led strategies. And for that reason, there is an opportunity for growth here.

Insight-led, not income-led

Successful mid-value programmes start with insight, not income targets. And what makes a mid-value programme at your charity will vary from another. This needs to be personal to your cause. And the criteria varied drastically from the first programme I set up to the second.

Understanding who your mid-value supporters are, how they entered your charity, what motivates them, and how they prefer to engage is critical.

Not all mid-value donors look the same. Some may be long-term loyal supporters, increasing their giving over time. Others arrive already giving generously. Some are driven by impact stories, others by urgency, personal connection, or belief in long-term change.

Data and insight allow charities to identify supporters with growth potential, spot signals of deeper interest, and tailor journeys that reflect different motivations and behaviours. But it is only the tip of the iceberg.

A one-size-fits-all approach simply doesn’t work.

Bringing supporters closer to the cause

For NSPCC mid value supporter may be small in number, but they represent significant value and long-term potential, so we set out to develop a strategic approach to engaging them. Using a combination of data and qualitative research we built a bespoke Welcome & Loyalty programme that is designed around their needs.

The focus was on:

• Strengthening emotional connection with NSPCC through an experience that brings them into a circle of like-minded people, including the NSPCC team and key players in children’s communities.
• Enhance personal connection by speaking to donors on a peer-to-peer level, with one consistent content curator (which continues through to the appeals programme).

This led to the creation of ‘Meet the Experts’: a peer-to-peer experience that takes supporters behind the curtain of the NSPCC’s biggest, most ambitious projects and programmes.

Through a connected series of print and digital touchpoints, supporters hear directly from the people leading this work. Each expert shares their personal ‘Why’, the challenges they’re tackling, and the transformational developments that loyal supporters are helping to make possible.

It offers MV donors a more intimate, authentic, insider view of the NSPCC – strengthening loyalty by helping them feel closer to the vision, the people and the long-term impact they’re enabling.

Why it matters now

In a climate where every supporter relationship counts more than ever, charities can’t afford to overlook the middle.

Mid-value fundraising is not about complexity. It’s about intentionality. Sometimes that means insight modelling. Sometimes it means a phone call.

Always, it means treating the middle as strategic. Not accidental.

Not sure where to begin with developing your mid-value programme? Thinking your programme might need a refresh? Get in touch and we’d be happy to share what we’re seeing working across the sector.

Amy Mitchell – Fundraising Planner

If you want to find out more about how we can help you with developing your approach to giving, then get in touch at SayHi@differentkettle.com