# Second gift syndrome

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/2008/05/01/second-gift-syndrome/
- Published: 2008-05-01T15:20:40+01:00
- Author: Howard Lake

**Last week I was lucky enough to spend some time with the Director of Fundraising
of a large France-based NGO with many fundraising offices all over the world.**

He was talking to me about something they call “consolidation”, which is effectively
a specific strategy for securing a second gift from a newly acquired donor. I was
interested in this as it is not something that I have generally come across in the
UK and yet when you think about it, it seems very obvious.

We spend a great deal of time, not to mention money, on donor acquisition programmes
by a whole variety of different mechanisms. Lots of blood, sweat and tears spent
developing compelling concepts, propositions, and creative gems aimed at persuading
someone to part with their cash for a good cause.

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And then what? Well too often, dumped straight into an existing communications programme
with barely a thank you or a welcome (and if you think I’m being harsh, trust me,
I’m not. For proof, [download our free mystery shopping report](http://www.johngrainassociates.com)).
This means, depending on when they gave, a donor could get any number of different
communications in a very random kind of way.

Some better programmes offer a Welcome process, but again after that it is usually
straight into a “appeals / newsletter / Virtual Gift” cycle of communications.

It is an obvious truth that in many respects, a donor’s first gift is their most
important, and so by the same logic, their second gift is not far behind. Surely
it indicates the beginning of some actual engagement with the charity (rather than
often just an emotive response to a cause) and a willingness to trust that organisation
to deliver on their propositions. Best of all, an indication that they could potentially
go on to become a loyal donor to the charity.

However, how many of us regularly track and analyse the number of second gifts received
from donors and whether this is increasing, declining, or static? And I suspect 
even fewer develop deliberate strategies for securing that second gift.

In France this NGO has developed a whole range of different communications built
up over a significant period of time (and at significant investment too) to respond
to a donor’s first gift based on a range of criteria such as donation value, source,
timing, and proposition.

They have seen their second gift levels increase significantly over time and subsequently
their retention and lifetime value measures too. By recognising this as (another)
key early stage in a donor’s relationship with the charity they have brought significant
benefits to their individual giving programme.