SEGEMENTATION ON SALES PERFORMANCE
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1    Background of the Study
Segmenting markets is a foundation for superior performance. Understanding how buyers’ needs and wants differ is important in creating useful market strategies. Valuable approach to segmenting markets might be of the most crucial factors in developed and implemented market-driven strategy in accordance to achieving higher sales performance.
Organizations major target in all marketing activities are the customers particularly the manufacturing companies like the Lever Brothers Company Nigeria PLC. Manufacturing companies thereby has to define their product not as what the companies make or produce but as what they do to satisfy customers (Yaw, 2011). The requirement for improvement in an organization’s perspective of buyers is rising because of buyers’ demands for distinctiveness and the increasing array of technology available to produce products to assure these demands. The division of a market into diverse homogenous groups of consumers is recognized as market segmentation. The marketing idea calls for considerate customers and fulfilling their every needs. But different customers have unlike needs, and it infrequently is possible to suit all customers by treating them alike (Maina, 2015).
One of the main reasons for attractiveness in market segmentation is to assist the company by accepting the desires of the customer base. Often the job of segregating consumers by detailed criteria will aid the company to recognize other applications for their products that might or might not have been self-evident before. Revealing other facts for the use of goods and services might aid the company target a large audience in that same demographic categorization and also
While these may be supposedly ‘ideal’ market segments, in certainty every business engaged in a market will widen different ways of imagining market segments, and make product separation strategies to utilize these segments (Maina, 2015). The market segmentation and matching product separation strategy can give a fixed temporary commercial benefit, which is important to its existence. According to Yaw (2011), excellence in customer service can be achieved when organizations make efforts to understand and react to customer expectations. Market segmentation was first in the middle of 1950s by Wendell R. Smith, an American professor of marketing. “Market segmentation divides a market into lesser groups of buyers with separate desires, features, or behaviours who might need separate products or marketing mix.” (Charles, 2013). Segmentation is the process of separating the market into group of customers or consumers with like desires. The more directly the needs match up, the smaller the segment tends to be, but the higher the quality customers are likely to be set to pay to have a product that more precisely tend to their desires (Blythe, 2003). Segmentation gives room marketers to recognize separate groups of customers whose behaviours much vary from others. This allow firms to alter their marketing mix, to cater for exacting desires of unlike market segments.  
Lever Brothers Nigeria PLC; as part of the manufacturing companies in Nigeria needs unwavering customer loyalty for profitability in this era on intense competition among  a variety of manufactured intermediaries.
Lever Brothers Nigeria PLC, manufacture huge variety of product such as: cream and lotion products; toilet soaps / laundry soaps; oral care products; baby care products; hair care products; Beverages / drinks, detergents; toothpaste; fabric washing / home cleaning, cubes etc that are segmented into various target customers. Toothpaste for instance with the brand “close up” is use virtually by everybody in Nigeria in all ages. The company cubes and detergents are also well used all over Nigeria. The presentation of this section is that as early as 1885 Lever Brothers Nigeria PLC found a must for marketing strategy and has taken a new step in penetrating the market for the product to boost sales performance. Market segmentation is a fundamentally important concept within the manufacturing industry. The customer segmentation process determines “the modus operandi” of all the functions that serve the customer. The main objective of segmentation must be how to succeed and maintain customers.
1.2    Statement of the Problem
The dynamics of the business environment for manufacturing industry as well as the dynamics of the customer needs are not debatable. The problem of market congestion with different and pro-type product is very common in Nigeria market. For instance, Lever Brother Nigeria PLC produces toothpaste called close-up. However, different product of toothpaste had fed the Nigeria market therefore deepening the high chances of sales performance of the company. This is one of the big problems facing the Lever Brother as a company. The same competitive market faces other product of the company such as detergent, cubes, etc.
Another problem the marketers of Lever Brothers are facing are occasional dissatisfaction of customer for some products leading to the patronization of competitors product. For instance close-up competes with Maclean, Oral B, etc. Of course, this is a big problem.
Poor customer service causes considerable damage to the goodwill of production companies players like Level Brothers PLC and this eventually lead to losses in sales and dwindling market share since excellent customer satisfaction on the other hand has a positive correlation with profitability, growth and customer loyalty. To achieve excellent customer service in the manufacturing industry, production companies must design products that meets the needs of various segments of customers and more so exceeds their expectations. Achieving customer satisfaction will be very difficult if manufacturing companies like the Lever Brothers PLC, fail to provide tailor-made products and services to high valued customers while simultaneously having a good package for the average customer.
In this era of shrinking markets, manufacturing companies can gain competitive edge over rivals by devoting resources to improve customer satisfaction in order to retain existing customers instead of wasting useful time and resources to win new customers. In the various categories or market segments of production companies, the needs of customers are diverse. It is therefore impossible for production companies to access the needs of each and every specific customer separately since meeting the needs of various segments of the rather than addressing the requirements of individual customers separately.   
The study therefore takes a critical look at how the manufacturing companies in Nigeria seek to achieve customer service excellence by using market segmentation. The researcher will specifically narrow the study to Lever Brothers Nigeria PLC which has a good segmentation strategy to please the various categories of customers in order to maintain and increase the market share in the midst of stiffer competition from rival companies and other production companies.
1.3    Research Questions
 Research questions shall be provided answers to;
(1)    What is the affiliation between Age segmentation and sales presentation of an organization?
(2)    What is the affiliation between Gender segmentation and sales presentation of an organization?
(3)    What is the affiliation between Usage rate segmentation and sales presentation of an organization?
(4)    What is the affiliation between Income segmentation and sales presentation of an organization?
(5)    What is the affiliation between Occasion segmentation and sales presentation of an organization?
1.4    Research Objectives
The aim of the study is to find-out if market segmentation improves sales performance in companies.
The specific findings of the study are:
(1)    To examine the affiliation between age segmentation and sale performance of an organization.
(2)    To inspect the affiliation between gender segmentation that could improve customers satisfaction to boost sale performance.
(3)    To determine the affiliation between usage rate segmentation and sale performance of an organization.
(4)    To determine the affiliation between income segmentation and sale performance of an organization.
(5)    To measure the affiliation between occasion segmentation and sale performance of an organization.
1.5    Research Hypotheses
The following research hypotheses shall be tested:
Ho1:    There is no affiliation between age segmentation and sales performance.  
HA1:    There is affiliation between age segmentation and sales performance.  
Ho2:    There is no affiliation between gender segmentation and sales performance.  
HA2:    There is affiliation between gender segmentation and sales performance.  
Ho3:    There is no affiliation between usage rate segmentation and sales performance.  
HA3:    There is relationship between usage rate segmentation and sales performance.  
Ho4:    There is no affiliation between income segmentation and sales performance.  
HA4:    There is affiliation between income segmentation and sales performance.  
Ho5:    There is no affiliation between occasion segmentation and sales performance.  
HA5:    There is relationship between occasion segmentation and sales performance.  
1.6    Scope of the Study
This segmentation will be restricted to age segmentation, gender segmentation, usage rate segmentation, income segmentation, occasion segmentation and sales performance, using a case study of Lever Brother Nigeria PLC, product in Benin market and customers.
1.7    Significance of the Study
This study will be of immense benefit to all the shareholders particularly the following;
(1)    Directors and Managers: the Lever Brother Nigeria PLC directors and managers we benefit from the study as the study will provide more information on customer perception of their product through market segmentation.
(2)    Customers: the study will also benefit the customers by providing them with vital information regarding Lever Brother Nigeria PLC product and the essences of the segmented products.
(3)    Government and Policies Markets: the study will also benefit government and policies makers have they we are well equipped into a variety of segmented products in the market in order to formulate proper economic policies.
(4)    Researchers and Students: the study will also espouse researchers and students to the knowledge gap in the area so as to conduct more studies on other product in Nigeria market.