David B. Wolfe, internationally recognized consumer behavior expert originated developmental relationship marketing (DRM). Author of Serving the Ageless Market (McGraw-Hill, 1990), released in Japanese in 1993, Wolfe’s assignments have taken him to Asia, Africa, and Europe.
      DRM is a marketing platform for connecting products in customers’ minds with their root motivations. Recent findings in brain research indicate that the roots of all motivations lie outside the realms of consciousness.
      Customer research primarily focuses on conscious moti-vations. But the fact that people often tell researchers things the marketplace later contradicts indicates frequent disconnect between reality and customers’ conscious minds.       DRM provides guidance for resolving these disconnects. It is the first marketing model based on depth behavior, and in particular, on developmental psychology, which has charted predictable changes in people’s worldviews, needs, motivations across the life span. Knowledge of these changes makes it possible to anticipate the broad outlines of customer behavior even before traditional research is conducted.

DRM has particular value in today’s markets. As boomers swell the ranks of older customers, many traditional marketing practices are being swept away. This owes much to behavior becoming more autonomous in the second half of life to make people more resistant to external influences, including advertising. The numerical dominance of aging boomers is promoting increased autonomy among virtually all customers.
      Further, the Internet is changing customer behavior by empowering customers as never before, giving them information about products and companies formerly not readily available to them. This calls for customer centric marketing that creates dialogues with customers. DRM guides marketers in conducting these dialogues in ways that empathetically connect customers’ minds to products.
      Wolfe’s position as a provocative and cutting-edge contributor to marketing is evident in the academic world where he has lectured at such universities as St. Louis University, Loyola College, Bentley College, University of New Hampshire, and the University of Southern California. He has taught a course in DRM at George Mason University’s Executive MBA Program.

AIG Insurance Group
Alexander Hamilton Life Insurance
AARP
American Express
AT&T
Bausch & Loomb
Blue Cross of California
California Prune Board
Coca Cola Company
Del Webb Corporation
Duncanson and Holt
Elderhostel
Episcopal Retirement Homes (Ohio)
Ford Motor Company

General Motors
The Hartford Insurance Co.
Intergroup Healthcare
Long Haymes Carr
Kimberly-Clark
Manor HealthCare Corporation
MARC-USA
MetLife
Marriott Corporation
NHK Television (Tokyo)
ODS (Tokyo)
PacifiCare Health Systems
PacifiCare of Oregon
Pharmaceutical Research Group

PruCare of California
Prudential Insurance Co. of America Prudential Securities
Ryowa Medical Management (Tokyo)
Saga Holidays International
Schwan’s Foods
Shearson Lehman Hutton
Showboat Hotel and Casino
Southwestern Bell
Sporting Goods Manufacturing Assoc.
Textron
USAA
U.S. Bank