Singapore – Global technology company Epson has unveiled its revitalised brand message, ‘Engineered for Good’ in Southeast Asia. This pivotal shift underscores Epson’s commitment to marry innovation with purpose by co-creating cutting-edge technology solutions that contribute towards a sustainable future. 

In an era where brands are distinguished by their values and aspirations, Epson redefines its identity to champion sustainability and meaningful innovation. The shift from its former brand message ‘It’s In the Details’ heralds a new purpose for Epson to go beyond product excellence and leverage on technology as a way to enrich communities. Epson’s corporate philosophy of ‘sho-sho-sei’ – or, ‘efficient, compact, and precise’ in Japanese – also aligns with this new brand message. 

This brand shift also builds on Epson’s momentum towards its Environmental Vision 2050, which stipulates a goal to become carbon-negative and underground resource-free by 2050. At the end of 2023, Epson Southeast Asia adopted 100% renewable energy at all major sites and factories worldwide. 

Tan May Lin, regional director of brand and communications at Epson Southeast Asia, said, “The actions of individuals and businesses, no matter how small, will play an important part in helping Southeast Asia achieve a sustainable future. Epson recognises that sustainability is a foundational element of responsible business practices. Hence, it is important that we communicate and advocate the use of Epson’s eco-efficient technology which helps reduce energy consumption, enhance productivity, and minimise the overall environmental impact of every Epson product.”

She added, “Our ‘Engineered for Good’ brand campaign reflects Epson’s unique philosophy of delivering efficient, compact and precise innovations. By further embracing innovation, we aim to combat global environmental challenges and societal issues, to enrich people’s lives and contribute to a better world.”

Singapore – Global customer service software company Zendesk has unveiled its new Zendesk Suite by including access to Zendesk’s comprehensive messaging solution, as the package brings together all Zendesk’s service capabilities into one complete offering that brings ease of use to the enterprise software space.

Through the new added feature, businesses can now communicate whether customers want to text, chat on their computer, reach out over WhatsApp or through connected conversational experiences across web, mobile, and social channels. Zendesk’s messaging solution also offers advanced capabilities including proactive notifications, enabling specialized third-party bots, and allowing customers to transact directly within the conversation when browsing products, reserving seats, or making payments.

The new messaging solution inclusion coincides with a greater need for messaging solutions for enterprises. According to a CX report by Zendesk itself, 2020 saw a 117% increase in the use of social messaging in APAC, while 69% of consumers in the region said they tried a new way to get in touch with customer service, with messaging and bots as the leading choices.

“Today’s customers demand real-time experiences at a level and pace we’ve never seen before. Companies cannot take customer loyalty for granted, and using outdated, expensive enterprise software that takes months to get up and running is a thing of the past,” said Adrian McDermott, president of products at Zendesk

“Businesses need the best possible technology to remain agile and face customers’ ever-evolving needs. Within hours, Zendesk can help businesses deliver great customer experiences, with messaging front and center,” added McDermott. 

For Kyle Jenke, partnerships director at WhatsApp, the Zendesk messaging solution integration speaks to the fact that more than 175 million people across the world are already messaging using a business account on WhatsApp every day.

“People today want to connect with businesses the same way they chat with their friends and family — with personal messaging to get questions answered and receive support quickly and conveniently. Through partnerships with companies like Zendesk, we’re making it easier for businesses to shift their operations online during the ongoing pandemic so they can stay close to their customers even when they’re physically apart,” said Jenke. 

Zendesk was one of the first SaaS companies to democratize the way businesses offered email support, and with its new Suite, is now leading the shift to messaging-driven relationships. 

Malaysia – In conjunction with its 25th anniversary, Malaysian telecommunications company Maxis unveiled a new brand purpose, which will convey the message of bringing together the best of technologies to help people, businesses and the nation “to always be ahead” in the middle of an uncertain world. 

Maxis CEO Gokhan Ogut said that along with a fresh brand direction, the company will adopt a new corporate identity in the objective to steer the company in furthering its leadership in the converged solutions industry in the nation.

“The ‘always be ahead’ spirit is about embracing change, growth, discovery and finding new ways through technology. We are making a commitment to all Malaysians, from individuals and families, to businesses and entire communities that Maxis will be their digital enabler and coach to help them leverage the best technologies so that they can always be ahead,” said Ogut. 

To start off the campaign, Maxis will roll out a series of short videos which will feature individuals and social enterprises who have inspiring stories about how technology and the internet has helped their lives, and enriched the communities around them. 

In one video published on Youtube, Maxis got Malaysian teacher Siti Faridah to share how she’s overcoming the virtual setup of learning and teaching in the middle of the country’s movement control order.

In one part of the video, she enumerates the ways she creates a virtual classroom, while being shown arranging her work from home setup, with a Maxis broadband on the side.

“One of the things I tried is creating a video content. Sometimes I do live streaming, sometimes I do Facebook live, and sometimes I upload video content on Youtube,” she said on the video.

In line with Maxis’ reworked brand purpose, the company will be doubling down on digitalisation programs and will launch a series of initiatives to provide assistance and fundamental skills for digital adoption and acceleration in communities across the country:

Among such initiatives is the SME Digitalisation Grant where SMEs get to claim up to RM5,000 for their digitalisation efforts.

Another one is the Digital 101 for SMEs which puts together courses from Maxis business to guide micro-SMEs on mastering digital marketing and eCommerce. 

An initiative called Device Tips will also be part of the series, a program that will help upskill families and tech enthusiasts on digital practices which is said to be in partnership with Samsung, Huawei and Apple.