Engage more sustaining donors to give mid-level and major gifts.
Many stations currently consider $1,000 or $1,200 to be a major gift. But for many donors, this level of giving is much more commonplace. Thus, with the growth of sustaining-giving programs in nearly every public media station, there is a great opportunity to engage more donors to give gifts of $85 or $100 a month to become mid-level and/or major donors (depending on how your station categorizes).
Often when we think about a $1,000 donation, it can seem like a large amount. Indeed, a donor contributing $1,000 in a single payment is a strong indication that they have a capacity to give even more.
However, when we look at current U.S. spending, we know that consumers are readily spending $1,000 or more on services today. The average monthly cable/bundle cost is more than $200 (Source: Allconnect), the average cell phone bill is $113 (Source: Allconnect). What does that tell us about the average public media fan and how they will react to an ask of contributing $100 a month? It tells us that a compelling pitch that focuses on the intersection of station value and the donor’s discretionary funds, can have a powerful outcome. That said, it appears that very few stations are prioritizing asks of $100/month at the moment.
Greater Public’s Benchmarks show that sustaining mid-level donors are a tiny number as a percentage of all sustaining donors, in many cases less than 1%. This small percentage might seem like a reason to avoid the ask, but the opposite is likely true. This number shows an enormous opportunity in the fundraising program to increase revenue and give donors who would like to be more generous a way to do so over time, which makes it affordable for their budget.
The great news about this opportunity is that the potential for revenue lies not just in converting single-gift donors to monthly-sustaining donors, but in upgrading both single-gift and sustaining donors to become mid-level and major donors.
Employing a variety of methods to grow a sustaining mid-level program is key. Utilize on-air drives, mail, email, telefunding, and in-person meetings to offer your $100-a-month sustaining-gift option. Find current donors who are giving at that amount and highlight their reasons for giving. That messaging can help to demonstrate that it is a feasible and fun way of giving. Many donors who have the capacity to give $100/month likely won’t see themselves as “major donors;” for them that label might be off-putting, so consider an alternate name to avoid any negative associations.
Most important, make sure this messaging is prominent, smooth, and compelling. It’s especially important to train your hosts to become accustomed to asking for this type of donation amount and not make it sound like it is a stretch. It’s an easy commitment for those who have the capacity, and for those who don’t, they will opt themselves into a lower category without worrying about your pitch for the larger donation.
Having a set of benefits that are offered to sustaining donors giving $1,000+ is also helpful, such as special events, concerts, listening parties, and behind-the-scenes access. However, it’s also important to know that more expensive premiums haven’t typically been a strong motivational tool for recruiting sustaining donors.
Setting a goal is a great way to ensure a strong focus on recruiting more $100/month sustaining donors. Once a goal has been set, work towards identifying the donors already in the file who are strong candidates for an upgrade. Use your on-air drives to message not only the $10- and $20-a-month option but to also ask for the larger monthly gift amounts and stress that it makes a larger gift more affordable when it’s paid each month. Most of all, don’t be afraid to ask listeners and donors for this larger commitment. Many are just waiting to be asked and need to hear the message a number of times.
See more from the Next-Level Sustainers Toolkit

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A great sustaining member program doesn’t just add sustainers, it keeps the sustainers already on file. These core strategies will help you keep sustainers close so you lose fewer of them over time.


Strategies to Build an Advanced Sustainer Program
Achieve maximum program growth with these strategies to keep more sustainers on file as well as increase the amount that those sustainers are giving each month.

Elevated Messaging and Marketing for Your Sustained Giving Program
Sustained giving is the most effective, convenient option for the majority of donors. So don’t keep it a secret!