When I saw the 'personal appeal', I thought Wikipedia was to shut down if they didn't receive funds. After reading the letter, I realized they were in no more danger than any other nonprofit. I wonder if others who donated did so because of what that sort of advertisement implied to them.
I absolutely agree. The header emphasized this- "A personal Appeal from Jimmy Wales" gave the impression that they were in trouble, and badly needed help.
Further, the "Please Read:" header at the beginning implies that this banner is more important than the others they had shown you before.
While it may have raised revenue this year, if they try the same tactic next year I suspect they'll start seeing user fatigue.
tldr; I feel like wikipedia cried wolf this year.