Ringio Launches New Cloud-Based Rich Calling Service for SMBs

Ringio today launched a new service for small and midsize businesses that brings them a combination of CRM and telephony functionality that until now has been available only through call centers and enterprise-level telephony systems.

Introduced at the Emerging Communications Conference & Awards (eComm 2010), Ringio’s Rich Calling service presents calls together with their contextual details, either through the service’s desktop client or through its mobile version, which also debuted today for Android-based smartphones. 

In studying the needs of SMBs closely, the Ringio team developed Rich Calling as a software as a service (SaaS). Ringio can be set up in minutes and works with users’ current phones, including mobile devices, with no additional hardware or software required. 

“We define ‘rich calling’ as bringing a telephone call and relevant information about the caller together at the same time to enrich communication and information sharing, and, most important, to accelerate speed-to-satisfaction,” said Ringio co-founder and chairman Michael Zirngibl.

“By tapping into the cloud for customer data, we bring everything that’s important about the caller to the top of your mind in real time,” he said. “As you take or make a call, you can draw upon the collective notes of everyone in your organization who has dealt with this person. This helps you to connect with customers much more efficiently, professionally and meaningfully than SMBs typically are able to do.”

Ringio’s intelligent call-routing technology, also part of the service, helps direct the caller to the right employee in the organization at the start. If he or she needs to transfer the caller to a colleague, the person handling the call can tell whether that coworker is available at that moment. “This kind of real-time visibility also known as ‘presence’ resolves issues quickly, avoids dumping customers into what they call ‘voicemail jail,’ and produces well-informed, coordinated responses that close the sale or solve the caller’s problem,” Zirngibl added.

Ringio is launching the service’s own integrated call-control and screen-pop client for the PC, Mac desktop, or Linux. Through the client, users view and add to a growing company store of customer information about contacts as they handle calls. Ringio also automatically retrieves and synchronizes records built using Google’s Contacts database, and plans are under way to integrate Ringio with Salesforce.com by later this summer.

The service will be provided directly to business customers through www.ringio.com; pricing starts at $99 per month for four users, with additional users at $25 per month.

Users can accept or redirect incoming calls as they appear on the screen; Ringio then completes the call to the user’s desired 10-digit phone number or sends it to voice mail. If users are not logged into the system, they can still receive calls on the Ringio number; in that case, an audio caller ID gives them the same screening options.

Ringio’s intelligent call-routing functionality is being provided by Voxeo. "Ringio clearly demonstrates the power of cloud communications to integrate hosted services from different providers," said Dan York, Voxeo's director of conversations. "By combining voice with presence and CRM systems on Voxeo's global, carrier-grade hosted platform, Ringio enables businesses to deliver a superior customer experience."