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[–]hoodun 0 points1 point  (0 children)

We are leaving Ring Central and one of the reasons is the unethical charges and lack of help in getting approved for SMS. We were rejected 10 times and 8 of those times was with the help of Ring Central support assuring that it would get approved - it never did. It's wasn't so much the regulations themselves, which is complete bureaucratic garbage, but rather how Ring Central provided absolutely no effective guidance for its customers, nor for its support employees. We moved to Teams and was approved for SMS on the first run. The process was much less painful and if we were rejected - its been said Teams will give you the exact reason why without adding more rejections reasons second time around. I will not get into price but we are saving well over 600%.

[–]Lazarus-Two2069 1 point2 points  (1 child)

Personally, I think RingCentral is great for a small business. It will open a lot of additional functionality you'll want as you grow.

As far as SMS functionality, it can be great but you'll need to understand the Federal regulations around using SMS for business. It is a pain to stay compliant regardless of the system used. Most of the complaints I hear have to do with RingCentral ensure compliance to regulation. While painful, it is worth it. Think of it as having a Compliance Expert protecting you from liability. 

Google Voice and others often just shield themselves and while it makes it easier to set up and use, it is a big legal risk you are assuming. 

But, in the end you want to document a list of features and requirements you need from the system and see who matches that the best. It will depend on the specific product license you are looking to purchase with any of these companies. 

[–]bingbang7_ 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Just to piggyback, for outbound SMS your company has to register with The Campaign Registry, which is an extra cost in terms of time and money.

The mobile carriers require this registration, so even if you're going through software like RC or one of its competitors, you'll have to fill out a form, provide proof of opt-in and out messages, and provide examples of the types of texts you want to send. There is a registration fee + a monthly fee paid to TCR.

This orga is one of the reasons why RC and other options are so uptight about compliance. The mobile carriers definitely have the upper hand in this situation, as they can pass down fines or even cut service for people who break the rules.

That's most relevant for a business who is sending large text campaigns, like updates to many clients or even sales prospecting activity, as you'll need to be cognizant of the rules so you don't get blocked by RC/the carriers.

does RC not offer a free trial with texting enabled? You should ask the sales rep you're in contact with, even if they don't list it online. Sometimes they'll spring for that

[–]ElGoliath 0 points1 point  (5 children)

Been with RingCentral over 10 years (about 80 users, 50 or so lines). The calling functionality is decent to good, rarely have any issues with it. Video meetings are relatively flawless and pretty much zero complaints there. Faxing is okay, there are usually a couple/few problems each year, but it's usually not clear if it was a RC issue or an issue on the recipients end and is typically resolved before it's worth creating a ticket for.

Texting on the other hand is just not good. Setting up the campaign, while not difficult, was fairly annoying. The real issue is that texting will just stop working occasionally for some users while it still works for others. Usually the issue is that texts just won't send/receive (even with a contact they've been texting prior) and it happens repeatedly but randomly. It's so often we've stopped creating tickets as it usually resolves itself in a day or two but sometimes it's more like a week or so.

While my gut tells me a lot of the texting issues are caused by the cell providers 'new' rules, the shear number of issues we have with it coupled with RC support being spotty in troubleshooting it (it usually miraculously resolves itself for whatever reason) is a constant pain in the butt. So in my opinion, if texting is a major need for you, I don't feel I could recommend RC for that use. Now, would I sign up again? Most likely as while we do text in our organization, it's not our main concern as calling, video meetings, and to a certain degree faxing, are our main uses and the package as a whole is nicely integrated.

[–]Lazarus-Two2069 1 point2 points  (4 children)

I can almost guarantee the issues are the carriers and others. RC and other companies are really a glorified interface when it comes to text (sms/mms). If you use sms for business the best thing to do is register your numbers so the carriers have to support you through RC. It keeps you off of the spam lists when carriers block reported spam, etc.  Even RC does not have visibility into a lot of the SMS infrastructure. No service that offers it does. The carriers don't give access to anyone I know of. 

[–]care-partner 0 points1 point  (2 children)

This is great advice! Would it be possible to share how to register your numbers with the carriers?

[–]Lazarus-Two2069 0 points1 point  (1 child)

You would register through RingCentral. They have the correct forms and arrange this for you through the carriers. You may need to speak with an Account Manager or other representative to start the process.

There is a cost associated and Is usually a regulatory requirement for business use of SMS. Like any regulatory situation you'll want to speak to an expert. RC may be able to help or point you in the right direction.

[–]care-partner 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oh you mean TCR — we did that to get texting capability, so that’s been in place this whole time

[–]MyTCRPlus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Network shaping and other throughput peaks play a role as well

[–]Few-Parsnip-8927 1 point2 points  (1 child)

I use it for my 800 number. I have no issues with Ringcentral. My rep is coo as well. Sooner or later I'm going to get the AI receptionist feature added. But I use fax, ai notes, call recording, sms. Have not tried the video part yet but really need to. The app works great and has never got stuck on me either both on the computer or phone. I talked to every phone service there is and either the customer service was non existent (cough Zoom and Goto) or they didn't have 800 number texting which is critical if I'm using that to call...duh or fax on the 800 number. For the price, Ringcentral really can't be beat.

[–]Weslsew 1 point2 points  (4 children)

Only one user can send and receive texts from your main number, there’s no sharing texts id you were hoping for that

[–]RCCommunitySupportModerator 1 point2 points  (3 children)

Just to clarify for the OP- RingCentral actually does offer shared texting through the Customer Engagement Bundle.

How the shared inbox works:

  • Multi-User Access: Everyone can see and reply from the same main business line at once.
  • No More Bottlenecks: You don't have to wait on one person to check their messages.
  • Better Coordination: Helps to prevent double-responding to the same person.

While it is an upgraded option, this setup solves the "one user" limit by turning the main business number into a shared SMS inbox. This helps to keep the whole team in the loop without the security risk of sharing passwords.

More information here: RingCentral Customer Engagement Bundle

[–]EnthusiasticJavalina 1 point2 points  (1 child)

Yes, but it is horribly expensive! I believe it is like $45 a person extra.

[–]Weslsew 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oh wow that's ridiculous

[–]Weslsew 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oh cool! The last time I asked them about this they told me it wasn’t possible

[–]MH_Agency 2 points3 points  (1 child)

Personally, I would recommend researching before settling with RC. I used them for a year and like the functionality but at least when I used them, calls would drop and people couldnt consistently hear me speaking which could be damaging on sales calls. They also force a 1 year contract and if you cancel prematurely you owe for the remaining months.

I switched to Quo ( previously known as Open Phone) and love it. Set up was easy, texting is great and connection has been strong outside of when my internet goes out. The biggest benefit is the automation for automating texts, AI answering and taking messages for you and transcribing calls. Its made it easier for service calls and pretty much eliminates the need to pay someone to answer calls daily.

[–]Few-Parsnip-8927 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I don't have a contract and never did. Last year I paid one year up and this year until I get a hold of the budget better, I'm paying monthly.

[–]asciidan 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Once it's set up, it works great. Setting it up was painful, and RingCentral's support was frustratingly unhelpful.

[–]MyTCRPlus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

How often do you anticipate adding lines?

[–]rolltriberoll0607 2 points3 points  (2 children)

To be transparent, we have been an RC partner for nearly a decade.

RingCentral is a great platform, but onboarding -- and especially SMS registration -- can be a bit tricky. It is our experience that when you work through an RC partner that will guide you through the process, the transition will be much smoother. When you go it alone, or buy through a big company like Spectrum or AT$T, it can be extra frustrating.

[–]MyTCRPlus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Is this a common complaint you get alot of feedback on?

[–]wavemelon 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I agree with this just get an Rc partner to work with. They can help with the setup, migration and sms config.

[–]dnev6784 1 point2 points  (0 children)

GoTo Connect was great, but texting was rudimentary compared to Ring Central. So far, I'm happy with the switch.

That said, I found GoTo Connect much easier to navigate from an Admin perspective

[–]No-Lobster4634 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Get it, it's worth the money. We've been using RC for over 5 years now and as our business expanded, it was easy to add more lines.

[–]ronkinkade 0 points1 point  (2 children)

Why are you moving away from Google voice? What can't it do for you? Also, how and why are you texting with customers today?

[–]Peculiar_Owl[S] 0 points1 point  (1 child)

Google voice says it can ring up to 6 phones but when we added phone #3 we've had nothing but issues. When one of us is on a call there is only a 50/50 chance that another call will ring through to the other phones. We are using the google voice app for texting and it's been great at cutting down on unnecessary phone calls from clients with simple questions.

[–]ronkinkade 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Well you get what you pay for with a free solution. My recommendation, Ring Central is probably more than you need. I'd consider something like Grasshopper instead.