三星的成功秘诀

    各公司成功的原因不尽相同。举例来说，苹果（Apple）成功的秘诀在于将硬件与软件完美结合，从而创造出优质的产品。微软（Microsoft）之所以获得支配地位，在一定程度上是因为不断坚持拿下大企业客户。而众所周知，谷歌（Google）的成功则是因为该公司让数据来塑造自身产品。三星（Samsung）则另辟蹊径，那就是多元化经营。

    这家韩国巨头几乎“占领”了消费者家中的每一个角落。从厨房到客厅，三星的产品可谓无处不在。2012年的消费电子展上，三星参展的众多产品共获得30项创新奖。而在2012年的iF设计大奖中，三星赢得44项令人垂涎的荣誉。iF设计大奖旨在表彰富有美感的工业设计。在《财富》杂志（Fortune）“最受尊敬企业”名单中，三星排在英特尔（Intel）、通用磨坊（General Mills）以及联合利华（Unilever）之前。

    因此，三星的年收入超过微软或苹果根本不足为奇。此外，截至2011年年底，三星已经成为世界顶级电视机制造商，获得了22.5％的市场份额。三星在显示器市场也拔得头筹，拥有15.1％的市场份额。三星还占据了全球冰箱市场13.5％的份额。而在洗衣机市场，其市场份额已经从2009年的7％增长到了2011年的9.2％。即便在笔记本市场，虽然比不上惠普（HP）和戴尔（Dell）等电脑巨头，但三星的市场份额在短短几年内已经几乎翻了一番，达到了6.3％。

    因此，三星的销售额增长可谓顺理成章。2012年第二季度，三星的收入达到了422亿美元（约合47.6万亿韩元），比去年同期增长了21％。公司利润达到46亿美元，较2011年增长了48％。三星的许多部门几乎都实现了增长，其中，信息技术和移动通信业务激增60%。另外，该公司数字媒体和通信业务的经营利润飙升了124％。

    三星在手机市场尤为独特，拥有众多追随者。Canaccord Genuity分析师迈克尔•沃克利近来给出的数据显示，苹果和三星两家公司获得了移动领域上季度总经营利润的108％（两家公司获得的份额超过100%是因为竞争对手存在亏损）。三星公司上个月宣布，它在不到两个月的时间里卖出了1千万部Galaxy S III手机，进一步证明了三星在移动领域的受欢迎程度。虽与苹果iPhone相比，这个数字相形见拙，但已经足以傲视其他竞争对手。

    当然，三星可能面临很多障碍。毫无疑问，三星从诺基亚（Nokia）和黑莓手机生产商Research in Motion的颓势中获益良多。但一个挥之不去的威胁是，谷歌可能将在未来推出一款“绝对惊人的产品”（某位兴奋的分析师的原话），颠覆整个Android市场。此外，三星正与苹果公司因专利问题对簿公堂，苹果起诉三星抄袭了自己的移动产品。当然，三星不同意这一起诉，并反诉苹果产品专利侵权。

    无论如何，三星找到了一种方法，通过冰箱、洗衣机、电视机等众多产品渗透到消费者家中。换言之，三星已经创造出一个“品牌”——营销人员大肆吹捧这一概念，但很少真正理解这个词。而且该品牌似乎在很多市场中都能使消费者产生共鸣，至少在目前是如此。

    译者：项航

    Companies become successful for different reasons. Apple, for example, married hardware and software to create premium products. Microsoft became dominant, in part, through hard-nosed pursuit of big business. And Google famously rose by letting data shape its products. Samsung has taken another route: ubiquity.

    The South Korean giant has gone after nearly every corner of consumers' homes, from the kitchen to the living room. At the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show, Samsung won 30 innovation awards for the breadth of products it put on display. And at the 2012 iF Design Awards, which aim to reward beauteous industrial design, the company garnered 44 coveted accolades. On Fortune's most admired companies list, Samsung ranks above Intel (INTC), General Mills (GIS), and Unilever (UL).

    Not much surprise then that Samsung generates more revenue every year than Microsoft (MSFT) or Apple (AAPL). Or that, by the end of 2011, Samsung was the world's top TV maker, earning 22.5% market share. In the display monitor market, it was first with 15.1% share. Samsung also owns some 13.5% of the worldwide refrigerator market. And in washing machines, its market share has grown from 7% in 2009 to 9.2% last year. Even in laptops, where giants like HP (HPQ) and Dell (DELL) dwarf it, Samsung has watched its market share nearly double to 6.3% in just a few years.

    Not surprisingly, Samsung's sales are up. During the second quarter of 2012, Samsung generated $42.2 billion (47.6 trillion Won), representing a 21% gain over the same period last year. Its profit hit $4.6 billion, up 48% compared to 2011. Nearly all of Samsung's sprawling divisions saw gains, including a 60% jump in its IT and mobile communications business. Operating profit in its digital media and communications operation rose 124%.

    Samsung is especially unique in the mobile market where it enjoys an immense following. According to recent data from Canaccord Genuity analyst T. Michael Walkley, Apple and Samsung shared 108% of the operating profits generated last quarter in the mobile space. (The companies were able to nab more than 100% because of the losses incurred by competitors.) Samsung's mobile popularity was further proven last month when the company announced that it had sold 10 million Galaxy S III units in less than two months. The figure pales in comparison to the number of iPhones Apple sells, but dwarfs competitors.

    Of course, Samsung faces plenty of possible obstacles. It has no doubt benefitted from the travails of Nokia (NOK) and Research in Motion (RIMM). But there is a lingering threat that Google (GOOG) will release an absolutely amazing product" -- in the words of one excited analyst -- that would upend the Android market. And, of course, Samsung is locked in a patent dispute with Apple over claims that it copied the iPhone maker's mobile products. Naturally, Samsung disagrees and launched its own patent-infringement claims against Apple's products.

    Still, Samsung has found a way to infiltrate the home by way of refrigerators, washing machines, televisions, and a host of other products. In other words, Samsung has created a "brand" – a much touted but hardly understood term thrown around by marketers. And that brand, at least for now, seems to resonate with consumers across a host of markets.