Gift Size Distribution by Segment
This dashboard-format analytic shows how gift size is distributed within the Top, Middle, and Bottom segments over 15 fiscal years, drawn from analyses QX92, QX93, and QX94.
How to use the Gift Size Distribution by Segment
This is a dashboard-format analytic that shows how gift size is distributed within each of your donor segments rather than just the average. It is built on the data from three analyses, QX92 for the Top segment, QX93 for the Middle, and QX94 for the Bottom, covering fifteen fiscal years, and it consolidates what were previously separate builds into one consistent view.
The Segment Snapshot tab gives you the latest fiscal year at a glance for each tier: donor count, total giving, share, the median gift, and the 75th-percentile gift. The Distribution Trends tab tracks the median gift and total giving by segment over time. Working with percentile breakpoints, the 25th, 50th, 75th, and the largest gifts, rather than a single average matters because distributions are skewed. The median tells you what a typical donor in the tier actually gives, while the 75th percentile and top gifts tell you how much headroom exists above that.
The strategic value is precision in where you draw your lines and set your asks. When the percentile breakpoints for a segment shift upward over time, your segment thresholds and your suggested ask amounts may be out of date, and this analytic makes that drift visible so you can refresh them deliberately.
You should refresh and review this annually with your major-gift and mid-level teams. Use the percentile shifts to recalibrate segment cutoffs, to tailor ask strings for each tier, and to identify Middle donors sitting near the top of their distribution as upgrade prospects.
Measure success by segment thresholds that stay aligned with the actual distribution, by ask amounts that track the moving percentile breakpoints, and by upward movement in each segment's median and 75th-percentile gift over time.
Analytic ID: QX261
Analytic Name: Gift Size Distribution by Segment
Focus: 3.3: Dashboards; 1.3: Gift Size Distribution Analysis; 2.5: Large Gift Growth (75th Percentile)
Type: Dashboard Style
Segments: Top, Middle, Bottom | Scope: Segment
Description: Gift-size distribution (25th/50th/75th/largest-percentile gift) by Top, Middle, and Bottom segment over 15 fiscal years (QX92/93/94). Hybrid: per-segment percentile charts plus full source-data tabs.
Key Question: How is gift size distributed within each segment, and how have the percentile breakpoints shifted over time?
Action: Use percentile shifts to refine segment thresholds and tailor major-gift and mid-level strategies.