Ruby Receptionist, also known as Ruby, is a live answering solution providing virtual receptionists and managed website chat. Despite its steep pricing, Ruby offers all-inclusive services, including bilingual answering, appointment scheduling, payment collection, and lead capture. Our Ruby Receptionist review found it ideal for businesses willing to invest in a high-quality answering solution to deliver professional and meaningful customer interactions.
Ruby Review at a Glance
What We Liked:
What’s Missing:
- Charges higher than the industry average
- Has higher overage fees than competitors
- Provides bilingual services only during business hours
- Only provides a limited number of chats on its monthly plans
Deciding Factors
Best For | Businesses seeking trained agents to handle inquiries over call or chat |
Standout Features |
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Pricing Plans |
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Integrations |
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Customer Service |
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- Flexible answering service: Whether you need full-time, part-time, or backup support, Ruby provides the best answering services tailored to your needs. This ensures 24/7 coverage for your callers, even when your team is busy or unavailable.
- Healthcare client communication: Ruby complies with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) regulations. Messages, voicemails, and call details containing sensitive medical information are sent securely in the Ruby app or its online portal.
- Website lead capture: Ruby’s top-ranking live chat service includes a lead capture tool for collecting data from website visitors, including their names and contact numbers, allowing you to run successful lead generation campaigns.
- Integrated business phone system: Ruby integrates with two leading small business VoIP systems, Nextiva and Grasshopper. With these integrations, it’s easy to manage call overflow and push clients right into Ruby instead of sending them to voicemail.
- Order processing: Ecommerce businesses needing extra help accepting orders over the phone are better off with VoiceNation. Unlike Ruby, which doesn’t support order processing, VoiceNation has live operators trained to handle new orders.
- Low-cost receptionist service: Solopreneurs and startups who find Ruby’s receptionist fees expensive may consider a more affordable alternative like Go Answer. Monthly fees start for as low as $175 minutes for 100 minutes.
- 24/7 bilingual receptionists: Ruby’s bilingual receptionists are only available during weekdays from 6:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Pacific Time. For 24/7 English and Spanish-speaking operators, Answer Connect is a better choice.
The Fit Small Business editorial process follows strict standards to ensure that our best answers are founded based on accuracy, clarity, authority, objectivity, and accessibility.I’ve been writing about office technology topics, particularly cloud-based communication solutions, such as voice-over-internet-protocol (VoIP) systems and call center software. Over the past two years, I’ve evaluated dozens of live answering services and developed a broad understanding of various providers’ pricing structures, features, and overall effectiveness.
In this review, I analyzed different aspects of Ruby as a live receptionist solution, including the cost per minute for each plan and the range of customer service features offered. Review my full methodology.
Ruby Receptionist Alternatives
Aside from its steep monthly fees, Ruby has a few limitations, such as the lack of 24/7 bilingual receptionists, order processing services, and affordable overage charges. If these are deal breakers for your business, here are some Ruby Receptionist alternatives to explore:
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Best For | High volume of inquiries | Low call volumes | Legal intake services |
Monthly Starting Price | $350 for | $175 for 100 minutes | |
Learn More |
Ruby scored very low in the pricing criteria, as monthly plans and overage fees are higher than the industry average for a live answering service. However, it earned a few points for the availability of a free trial and all-inclusive packages. There are two separate pricing plans for its virtual receptionist and live chat services. It also offers bundled plans that combine these services at a discounted rate of 25%, starting at $112 per month.
What I like about Ruby is that its monthly subscription covers all the essential answering features without requiring additional fees. On top of its receptionist minutes, all Ruby subscribers get support for appointment scheduling, message intake, payment collections, and call handling.
Ruby provides a team of US-based receptionists to deliver personalized experiences for your customers through phone calls or website chats. All service plans include 24/7 coverage, a mobile app, and HIPAA-compliant security.
All agents undergo training in conflict resolution, active listening, and empathetic service. Ruby assigns a team for your account to gather and organize customer details based on your guidelines and deliver them after the chat or call ends.
Listed below are some of the other key features included with all Ruby plan subscriptions:
- Local/toll-free number
- Bilingual agents
- Mobile app
- Client intake
- Call routing
- Appointment scheduling
- Payment collection
- Line transfers
- Hold music
- Personalized greetings
- Zapier integration
- Customized FAQs
On top of its live answering services, Ruby offers specialized customer service support such as appointment scheduling, payment processing, and customer data collection. Bilingual receptionists fluent in English and Spanish can handle your calls during regular business hours. Its expanded capabilities, like the automated lead capture tool, support digital marketers wanting to improve their website marketing strategy.
Click on each item below to discover other Ruby features:
Ruby’s live chat agents specialize in lead capturing to help businesses turn website visitors into buying customers. The chat specialists provide key information to customers, including business hours, location, and services. They can also collect contact details to help you follow up on leads.
To make it easy for users to know which customers to prioritize for callbacks, the agents use tags like “Lead,” “Current Client,” “Actionable [support],” or “Non-actionable [support].” Access this information easily on your Ruby online dashboard or mobile app.
Website visitors can count on a response in 60 seconds or less. (Source: Ruby)
The chat transcript feature provides full context into the conversation between Ruby’s receptionist and the website visitor. Comprehensive reporting tools are available to help you evaluate the impact of adding live chat to your website.
Convert website visitors into customers with Ruby’s lead capture tool. When someone visits your website, Ruby initiates a chat to collect valuable details through basic yes-or-no and multiple-choice questions. Information, such as the lead’s name, phone number, and inquiry type, is sent directly to your email, allowing you to follow up easily. It’s highly customizable and even supports search engine visibility as Google prefers user-friendly websites.
Collect any data you need from customers. (Source: Ruby)
You can customize the lead capture form to match your business goals and branding. Select the theme and placement on your website and add a call to action to enhance conversion rates. Once the visitor reaches the end of the flow, the branching feature lets you add a question asking if they need assistance.
Ruby offers scheduling capabilities to book appointments and meetings on your behalf. It uses a scheduling software called Calendly and works with your preferred calendaring system to avoid double bookings.
Ruby works seamlessly with Calendly to add scheduling activities to your account. (Source: Ruby)
With Ruby, booking appointments during an ongoing call or offering to schedule a meeting is easy. Plus, you can collect the callers’ information and create calendar links for employees, teams, specific call types, and various meeting lengths. Ruby will review your business calendar to ensure it aligns with its guidelines.
Ruby offers a comprehensive resource library for those who want to explore the advantages of its live receptionist services. Website resources include infographics, case studies, e-books, and workshops. The help center features a video library, ideal for those who learn best through visuals. There’s also a resources page containing blogs that outline tips for maximizing Ruby’s services and features.
Ruby’s help center features a broad range of topics. (Source: Ruby)
When it comes to real-time support, clients can reach out to Ruby via phone or email on weekdays. Live chat isn’t available, while those seeking support outside business hours may explore the help center for troubleshooting and relevant topics.
Ruby earned a perfect score on ease of use since getting started and using the services is straightforward. Users whose numbers are hosted by Ruby simply have to log into the online portal (my.ruby.com) or mobile app to forward calls. For those with a separate phone provider, Ruby initiates the call forwarding with the telecom company.
Stay connected with your callers through the Ruby app. (Source: Ruby)
The Ruby app provides various features to help you get the most out of its receptionist service. Quickly update call handling instructions, control when to receive calls, access call records, and choose your caller ID.
Ruby offers call and chat management services, allowing businesses to have a seamless extension of their customer service team. US-based agents are rigorously trained to support real, human conversations instead of relying on scripts. While it’s more expensive than competing solutions, Ruby does a great job of demonstrating professionalism and thoughtfulness in its interactions.
Here are the most recent ratings earned by Ruby on popular review sites:
- TrustRadius: 4.4 out of 5 based on 782 reviews
- G2: 3.7 out of 5 based on 11 reviews
- Capterra: 4.1 out of 5 based on 9 reviews
Most Ruby Receptionist reviews online are from small business owners with less than 50 employees. Positive feedback came from clients who value Ruby’s professionalism and friendly approach to handling frontline phone calls.
However, many clients complain about its steep monthly fees and frequent price increases. Despite the cost, they still consider it worth the investment, praising Ruby as an excellent choice for call handling compared to other receptionist solutions.
Methodology: How I Evaluated Ruby
To ensure an unbiased and accurate evaluation of Ruby, I explored its answering solution and managed chat features. I also reviewed feedback from verified customers and analyzed their experiences with Ruby’s receptionists. As the basis for my evaluation, I compared Ruby with other popular live-answering solutions on the market. Discover the criteria behind the rubric scoring used to evaluate Ruby.
20% of Overall Score
To determine affordability, I looked at the provider’s entry-level pricing, annual discount offerings, and the availability of a free trial. I checked if there’s a setup fee since most providers include this in their pricing.
25% of Overall Score
The general features I considered were bilingual receptionists, voicemail boxes, and custom answering hours. I gave the provider more points for having a mobile app that helps users quickly access information about customer interactions.
20% of Overall Score
The niche features I included in my evaluation were live chat service, order processing, and appointment scheduling. I checked if the provider has broad integrations with third-party apps.
10% of Overall Score
I determined the technical skills required to set up and use the provider’s services. I usually give more points to providers with an intuitive platform interface.
10% of Overall Score
The types of customer service channels the provider offers were part of my assessment, giving more points when there’s phone, email, and live chat support. I looked at the customer service hours as well.
15% of Overall Score
This includes my assessment of the provider’s standout features, popularity, and value for money. I browsed through verified Ruby reviews in third-party platforms to measure the level of customer satisfaction of current users.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Yes. Upon subscription, users can claim their free local or toll-free number or port an existing one. With the Ruby app, you get to pick your business number as your caller ID to keep your personal number private when you make or return calls. Using your Ruby-hosted number, you can send and receive text messages directly in the Ruby app.
Ruby’s chat specialists collect and convey lead information to its Call Connect Team, which will then contact the caller and connect your sales representative. With this chat-call connection feature, you can pitch to prospects at a time when they’re most engaged, increasing the likelihood of purchase.
Yes. Aside from handling inbound calls, Ruby accepts outbound call campaigns. To arrange these outbound calls, select the person you want to call back on the mobile app and click the “Assist” button at the top of the screen. Provide the call details on the input field.
Bottom Line
Ruby Receptionist offers virtual receptionist and live chat solutions for small businesses seeking to provide better customer experience and meaningful client interactions. It offers various answering services, ranging from lead generation to appointment scheduling. While it is priced higher than other local receptionist companies, Ruby guarantees a high level of professionalism and quality service. Sign up today for Ruby’s 14-day free trial.