RingCentral

RingCentral was founded in 1999 by Vlad Shmunis and launched officially in 2003. They were one of the first providers to stick their flag in the ground and offer cloud-based IP PBX and phone service. They offer a robust, redundant, and reliable platform that has numerous features. For over a decade, RingCentral has offered small and medium-sized businesses phone features that were previously only available to the largest and richest companies. Now, they have plenty of company, but they still lead the way.

RingCentral Pricing and Services

Help & Support Options:

• 24/7 customer phone support available for Office customers with two or more users.
• Professional and Office customers with one user: Phone support Monday–Friday, 8 AM–9 PM ET (5 AM–6 PM PT)
• Comprehensive FAQ section
• Online guides and video tutorials

RingCentral’s Most Popular Plan: Office Premium

• Mobile App: Available for iOS, Apple Watch, Android, and Windows Phone
• 2,500 toll free minutes (number not included)
• Maximum 25 participants in HD videoconferencing
• Unlimited inbound and outbound US and Canada calling
• Call management and phone system administration
• Glip for team collaboration
• Integrations with business applications
• Phone rental or purchase options
• Call log reports
• Inbound Caller ID by name
• HD Voice
• Automatic call recording
• Multi-level Auto Attendant
• Salesforce, Zendesk, and Desk.com integration
• Single Sign-on

RingCentral Office Premium Pricing:

• 1 User: $34.99/mo, $42.99/mo, $49.99/mo
• 2-19 Users: $24.99/mo, $27.99/mo, $34.99/mo
• 20-99 Users: $21.99/mo, $24.99/mo, $31.99/mo
• 100-999 Users: $19.99/mo, $22.99/mo, $29.99/mo

Available Calling Features

• Automatic call recording: Record calls for legal and training purposes
• Call Flip: Seamlessly transfer a call from your home device to your mobile device without even putting the caller on hold. RingCentral was the first to develop this feature, and few others have it.
• Call Forwarding: Redirect all calls
• Call Logs: See who called and for how long
• Call Management/Call Rules/ Phone System Administration: This sums up many terms for the ways you can control inbound and outbound calls, including working hours. It also controls what phones are connected within the plan so you can work from anywhere
• Call Park: Transfer a call to a dedicated “empty” line while you find the best person to take the call, who can pick up the call without having to talk to the first agent again
• Call screening: Have the inbound caller say their name before they can connect to a call.
• Glip for team collaboration: Similar to Slack or Hipchat, this feature allows teams to communicate in their own permanent chat room, share notes, assign tasks, and access your files. This is available on all RingCentral Office plans.
• HD Videoconferencing: Hold conferences in 1080P on your tablet or computer using a regular webcam rather than room-sized equipment. The software automatically focuses on the person speaking.
• HD Voice: delivers audio in higher quality speech during a regular call.
• Inbound Caller ID by name: See more than just a phone number when your phone rings
• Integrations: RingCentral office seamlessly integrates with business applications such as software suites from Google and Microsoft. What services can be integrated depends on your level of service.
• Intercom: Talk to your colleagues within the office through your desk phone.
• Message alerts: Get an email alert or text message when you receive faxes and voicemail.
• Missed-call notifications: Get notifications via email, text message, and your softphone/app when you miss a call.
• Mobile App: Available for iOS, Android, and Windows Phone
• Multi-Level Auto-Attendant: Set up a way to navigate inbound calls to the best agent to take incoming calls.
• VoIP Paging: Your desk phones’ speakerphones become a mini PA system within a department. Make announcements directly through your desk phone or smartphone.
• Phone rental or purchase: Save money in the long term by buying, or save money upfront and be assured of the best technical support with ongoing rentals
• Presence: See who your colleagues are talking to, if anyone, before transferring a call
• Shared lines: More than one phone can be connected to the same number or extension; no need for call transfers.
• Single Sign-on: Empowers select or all members in a company to access all the company application with one set of credentials.
• Toll free minutes: Every plan includes inbound toll free minutes to be shared with all users. Toll free number costs the same as a second local number.
• Unlimited inbound and outbound US calling: Plus great rates on international calls
• Voicemail-to-text: Automatic voicemail transcription.

RingCentral’s Recent Awards:

RingCentral has acquired a number of awards and official certifications over the past few years. Some recent accreditations include:

– RingCentral Earns Frost & Sullivan’s Market Leadership Award for the Second Consecutive Year
– RingCentral Named a Leader in Gartner’s 2015 Magic Quadrant for Unified Communications as a Service Worldwide
– 2015 American Business Awards℠ Recognizes RingCentral With Bronze Stevie Award for Customer Service Team of the Year
– RingCentral Receives Frost & Sullivan Market Leadership Award
– RingCentral Selected for Internet Telephony TMC Labs Innovation Award
– RingCentral Recognized for Global Business Excellence Award
– RingCentral Awarded for CRM Customer Magazine Award

Editor’s Bottom Line of RingCentral

Over 300,000 customers can’t be wrong. RingCentral has been a perennial favorite of VoIP review sites. They continue to innovate from either their in-house team or by making deals with smart companies. One of their best choices was to enter a partnership with Zoom, making it possible to have HD quality video conferences with large numbers of participants. Formerly, this was only available with huge hardware, some that even needed its own dedicated rooms. Instead, a laptop or tablet is now all you need. This offering is a game changer that few other providers can compete with.

RingCentral has a huge head start over today’s VoIP startups, and but they’re always looking forward rather than resting on their laurels. Every few years, they find a way to reinvent themselves and stay fresh. It’s hard to say anything bad about RingCentral, but they do seem a little vanilla. Vanilla, of course, is the most popular flavor of ice cream, so that’s good for most. But, there are some companies out there that like quirky companies and gimmicks. RingCentral stays away from the bleeding edge and sticks to software and hardware with a proven track record.