RingCentral Review: Budget Friendly and Feature Heavy

In a world of an almost unlimited number of selections in the business-class VoIP market, only a few companies stand out from the crowd.

RingCentral is one such company. With a huge number of features ranging from unlimited international calling to contract-free plans, this business VoIP solution is one to watch.

So, what exactly makes RingCentral and its features such a great choice for small businesses? We reviewed the RingCentral service to understand why.

Let’s take a look at the features it offers, along with some of the cons so you can make the best decision for your needs.

Easy Initial Configuration

RingCentral uses different online wizards and configuration specialists to get you up and running.

Getting set up on a new VoIP business system is sometimes a headache-inducing process that’s more stress than it’s worth.

RingCentral has dedicated time and resources to minimize the stress of setting up the Ring Central desktop app (or mobile app) through the use of a handful of configuration wizards (a great feature mind you), rather than rely on the availability and schedule of an employee.

Upon testing these setup wizards, we found that they walk you step-by-step through the whole process of configuring this private branch exchange (PBX) system with clear explanations. For example, you can use one of these setup wizards to add a new user to the plan, assign a phone to the new user, and indicate which state and city they’re in.

RingCentral also offers setup wizards for creating auto-attendant services, user extensions, and company information maintenance.

Cloud Connectivity

RingCentral offers a variety of cloud-based solutions for the administration of their Voice-over-IP system for small businesses. These solutions include mobiles apps for iOS and Android that allow you take your calls and texts on the go.

RingCentral also helps business teams collaborate better with an in-depth messaging, file sharing, and conferencing system in the same package. If you’re looking for ways to keep your employees more connected, RingCentral’s PBX system can help.

Budget-Conscious Plans

RingCentral offers a variety of plans that won’t hurt your wallet.

Many VoIP provides offer services at exorbitant prices that also have constricting contracts tied to them.

RingCentral is the opposite.

They offer a wide variety of business plans to fit any budget, starting as low as $19.99 per month. This introductory pricing is a win for all the small businesses trying to build a more reliable communications system on a budget.

The best part about RingCentral’s pricing structure and VoIP technology is that they don’t require you to purchase a brand-new, VoIP-only phone system when you sign up for a new plan, unlike other providers.

If you want, you can use your old analog system with their services (to engage in any type of meeting), which ultimately saves you the heavy upfront cost of replacing your entire phone system.

RingCentral is easily scalable.

As you continue to grow or shrink, you can easily update the features you need. And since RingCentral doesn’t lock you into any kind of annual contract, you can do this whenever you want without the fear of getting hit with cancellation fees. Many services we reviewed require service contracts, making RingCentral stand out.

External Integrations

RingCentral understands that most businesses use a wide variety of different communications software to meet their customers’ needs. As such, this small business PBX can integrate with Microsoft Outlook, Google Apps, Box, and Dropbox. You can even integrate with enterprise solutions like Salesforce, Zendesk, and Desk.com with higher-priced plans.

And the integrations don’t stop there. While these are some of the more common integrations, RingCentral doesn’t limit you on what software you can use with the VoIP system. The company also offers a developer platform that you can use to create custom integrations to fit your specific needs and software.

For the most part, integrating to other products works just fine. However, during our review and testing, we found that the integrations weren’t always the most reliable.

Customer Support

You can get support from RIngCentral through phone support, live chat, email support, and more.

While RingCentral tries to keep everything automated and self-contained in your own sphere, it recognizes that there are still times when live support for their VoIP solution is needed, as we experience during our review. As such, the company offers a number of different support options for their customers.

For any plan with more than two users, RingCentral offers 24/7 live phone support in English. On their support website, you can find phone numbers for major regions around the world.

If you need non-English phone support, you can reach RingCentral Monday-Friday, 9am-6pm Central European Time. RingCentral also offers 24/7 live chat support through their website.

If your matter isn’t urgent, you can also elect to create a case through RingCentral’s support website. This allows the support team to create a more personalized solution to your needs. You can also use this section of the website to check on any cases you have previously opened.

Finally, you can use the RingCentral community forums to find an answer to your problem. The forums feature thousands of questions and answers, which are all easily searchable. RingCentral staff frequents the forums and answers questions where they can, but many of the users are helpful enough to answer the questions quickly and correctly.

After reviewing and testing this business VoIP provider, we’re giving it an exceptional score. It struggles at times staying fully connected and integrated to the third-party services you have linked, but still offers good stability most of the time.

If you’re looking for a reliable, easy-to-use, and easy-to-set up VoIP service for business, RingCentral is a solid choice.