the secret to the success of these products is believed to lie in their formula of ingredients.

這些產品成功的秘密被認為是在於它們的食材配方。

Because companies keep these formulas a guarded secret and no one from outside of the company can get hold of these recipes,

因為公司們將這些配方當作被保護的秘密，任何公司以外的人都無法取得食譜，

these products⏤and their tastes⏤can simply not be replicated by another brand, making them unique and thus, irreplaceable in the market.

這些產品和它們的完全無法被另一個品牌複製，使它們獨特，也因此在市場上無可取代。

In 2011, Cola-Cola surprised the world when they announced that they would share the confidential formula of their world-famous drink with the public during an NFL commercial.

2011 年時，可口可樂驚喜了全世界，因為他們宣布即將在一場國家美式足球聯盟廣告中與大眾分享他們世界知名飲料的秘密配方。

Turned out, it was merely a marketing ploy where the company teased a "comical" formula for a fraction of a second.

結果那只是一種行銷策略，公司在極短的時間裡預告了一個「搞笑」配方。

In 1977, the company even pulled out of India because they would've been legally required to divulge their ingredient list to the government.

1977 年時，這間公司甚至撤出印度市場，因為他們依法必須要向政府透露其成分表。

In another case, they managed to stall a divorce case when they suspected that some of the Coca-Cola founder's handwritten notes were being shared as a part of a divorce settlement.

在另一個案例中，當公司懷疑可口可樂創始人手寫筆記被做為離婚協議部分條件時，成功地拖延了這起離婚官司。

All of these incidents created the buzz in media which, in turn, worked as a free advertisement for the Coca-Cola.

這些事件在各家媒體引起轟動，反而成為給可口可樂的免費廣告。

The company apparently believes that if you've got a secret of this much importance, you got to protect it with best of your capabilities.

該公司顯然認為，如果有一個如此重要的祕密，就必須盡最大努力保護它。

That's why the only printed copy of the full formula lies inside a secure vault on the grounds of the World of Coca-Cola in Atlanta.

這就是為什麼完整配方唯一的紙本躺在亞特蘭大可口可樂世界展覽館內隱密保險庫中。

Apart from that, only two employees are privy to the complete formula at any given time, and they're not permitted to travel together.

除此之外，任何時候都只有兩名員工能夠知道完整配方，而且這兩人是不被允許一起旅行的。

The identity of these two employees is itself a secret.

這兩名員工本身的身份就是一個祕密。

Alright; makes sense.

好吧，有道理。

But the question that comes to mind is: How does Coca-Cola manage to manufacture and sell 1.7 billion drinks in more than 200 countries around the globe every single day,

但浮現在腦中的問題是：可口可樂如何每天在全球超過 200 個國家製造並銷售 17 億瓶飲料，

when the ingredients to produce the product is only known to a handful of people?

當製造產品的成分只有少數幾個人知曉時？

If it really is the center of Cola empire, why hasn't any Cola employee been successful in leaking the formula yet?

如果它真的是可樂帝國中心，為什麼沒有任何員工成功地洩漏配方？

That, too, in a history of more than a century?

尤其是在擁有超過一世紀歷史的狀況下。

And why doesn't one just find out the components of the drink in a lab through scientific methods?

為什麼沒有人乾脆在實驗室裡透過科學手法找出這個飲料的成分呢？

Quite contrary to these, in 2006, a former employee of Coca-Cola attempted to sell some confidential documents that possibly included the secret formula and a vial of unreleased drink to Pepsi for 1.5 Million dollars.

與這些問題相反，2006 年時有一名可口可樂公司前員工試圖以美金 150 萬元將一些其中可能包括祕密配方的祕密文件和一小瓶未發佈飲料出售給百事可樂。

Instead of breaking a deal, Pepsi contacted the FBI and helped the police in a plot to arrest the man red-handed.

與其達成交易，百事可樂反而與聯邦調查局聯繫，幫助警方策劃當場逮捕該男子。

Pepsi could've used this opportunity to sell the taste of Coca-Cola under their name and become the sole player in the market.

百事可樂本可以利用這個機會，以自家品牌銷售可口可樂的味道，成為市場上唯一贏家。

They didn't do so because, first, this would've been illegal, and second, it's not worth the risk or effort.

他們沒有這樣做，首先是因為那將是違法的，其次也不值得冒這個風險或付出努力。

The reality is that the Coca-Cola secret formula isn't really a secret, so spending millions of dollar to get this doesn't make sense.

現實情況是，可口可樂的祕密配方並不真的是祕密，所以花費數百萬美元來獲得它是沒有意義的。

The exact formula is known to many people around the world, and any talented chemist can recreate the formula to an extent that's indistinguishable from the real one in a blind taste at a much lower cost.

全世界很多人都知道確切的配方，任何有能力的化學家也能夠以較低成本重現此配方，與原版的鑑別度低到盲測時無法辨別真假。

For decades, Coca-Cola has used these rumors about a secret formula to enhance consumer perception of Coca-Cola's specialness.

幾十年來，可口可樂公司一直利用這些祕密配方的傳言來提高消費者對可口可樂特殊性的觀感。

By insisting that the recipe is a trade secret, Coca-Cola creates a mystique around the product that helps maintain a certain image in the minds of customers.

透過堅稱配方是商業祕密，可口可樂公司在產品周圍營造了一種神祕感，有助於在客戶心中推廣某種形象。

While what's really special about Coca-Cola is its branding, the nostalgia behind its history, and its chain of distribution which can't be copied.

可口可樂真正特別之處在於它的品牌、它歷史當中的懷舊情結，以及它不可能被複製的配銷通路。

People may buy fake Gucci bags because the original ones may cost a liver and kidney,

人們可能會購買假的 Gucci 包，因為正牌包包可能是天價，

but why would anyone buy a slightly cheaper Coca-Cola drink from a nameless brand when one can easily afford the real one?

但如果能夠輕易地負擔正牌飲料時，為什麼會有人想要以稍微便宜的價格購買無牌可樂飲品？

Not many people would buy something that tastes like a Coca-Cola drink in a Pepsi bottle, either.

也沒有多少人會購買用百事可樂瓶子裝著、味道近似可口可樂的飲料。

Similarly, a newly-founded SideNote's Big Mac may have the same recipe as McDonald's, but [it] doesn't give you the happy clown guy and the billions of dollars of marketing power.

同樣地，一個創的 SideNote 大麥克可能有與麥當勞相同的食譜，但它並沒有給你帶來快樂的小丑人和數十億美元的營銷力。

In fact, Coca-Cola's taste is so tightly tied to its name after years of marketing that even the company itself can't easily change it.

事實上，在多年行銷策略後，可口可樂的風味與其品牌密切關聯到連公司本身都無法輕易地改變它。

In the 1980s, the company attempted to change the formula of the drink⏤a new, better-tasting coke even passed a blind test against the old one.

在 1980 年代時，該公司試圖改變飲料的配方，提供一種全新、味道在盲測時甚至超越原版的飲料。

But when it was brought to the market, the company faced a massive backlash from the public.

但當它在市場上推出時，公司面臨了大眾的強烈反彈。

People still preferred the old coke because of its familiar taste, and the company gave in to protests and returned to the old formula.

人們仍然因為熟悉的風味而偏好舊版可樂，公司最終在抗議當前而投降，重拾老配方。