Announcement • May 02
RingCentral Inc Unveils Advanced Business Messaging, AI -Powered Engagement, and Phone Innovations
RingCentral, Inc. announced innovations designed to help organizations deliver trusted, always-on customer engagement. New capabilities include Rich Communication Services (RCS) with Branded Messaging, Enterprise Branded Calling, international SMS expansion, Customer Engagement Bundle (CEB) for Microsoft Teams, and Operator Connect for Microsoft Teams. In addition, RingCentral has expanded AI Receptionist (AIR) to shared SMS inbox and call queues, enabling real-time, automated engagement that ensures no customer inquiry is missed. RingCentral is introducing the availability of Branded Messaging through RCS, marking a big leap forward from sending standard SMS. Rather than plain text from an unrecognized number, RCS enables businesses to deliver rich, branded messaging experiences—with verified business identities—all within the recipient’s native messaging app, no download required. RCS moves business messaging beyond one-way communication, enabling more dynamic, responsive customer interactions. Branded Messaging is the first phase of RingCentral’s RCS rollout. Capabilities empower businesses to present a verified, recognizable identity in every message, with their logo, brand name, and tagline displayed directly in the thread. Subsequent phases will add high-quality media, interactive carousels, and one-tap reply options, enabling businesses to move from simple verified messages to fully rich, conversational experiences. Whether sending appointment reminders, service alerts, or promotions, businesses using branded messaging drive higher engagement and build customer recognition at scale. RingCentral also offers Enterprise Branded Calling designed to help businesses break through the rising challenge of unanswered calls. When a business using RingCentral places an outbound call, they can display their company name and logo so customers know immediately who is calling and why—driving higher answer rates and more productive conversations from the very first moment of contact. Together, Branded Messaging and Enterprise Branded Calling give businesses a consistent, verified brand presence across both messaging and voice, ensuring every customer interaction begins with recognition and confidence. RingCentral is expanding global messaging with SMS in the UK and Australia, enabling organizations to extend customer engagement beyond the U.S. with reliable communications that reach the intended recipient. Utilizing mobile numbers for easy integration, customers will now be able to leverage their trusted business number or direct line to seamlessly engage their customers over voice and SMS. Additionally, RingCentral has launched support for SMS notifications across 190 countries with alphanumeric sender IDs. Through intelligent routing, message fallback capabilities, and strategic carrier partnerships, international SMS offers an average deliverability rate of 98%, maximizing reach for international companies for mission-critical notifications, updates, and marketing campaigns. RingCentral is expanding AI Receptionist (AIR) into a cross-channel automation layer that spans both voice and SMS, bringing AI-powered automation into every customer conversation. Historically focused on voice, AIR now extends into SMS inboxes, enabling businesses to automatically respond to customer inquiries via messaging. By interpreting intent and maintaining context across channels, AIR delivers real-time, accurate responses based on approved business knowledge—creating a unified, always-on experience whether customers call or text. AIR also integrates with call queues to handle overflow and missed calls, stepping in when agents are unavailable or wait times are high. This ensures customers receive an immediate response instead of being placed on hold or abandoning the interaction, while capturing key details for follow-up. Key capabilities include: – Automating responses across both voice and SMS – Interpreting customer intent and maintaining context across channels – Handling routine inquiries instantly to reduce response times – Managing call overflow and missed interactions with AI-powered responses – Capturing customer needs in real-time for faster, more informed follow-up – Providing always-on engagement during peak demand or after hours. By extending AI across messaging and call handling, organizations can reduce missed interactions, improve responsiveness, and deliver consistent, high-quality service without increasing operational overhead. RingCentral’s Customer Engagement Bundle (CEB) for Microsoft Teams integrates voice, SMS, intelligent call routing, and AI-powered insights natively within Teams—transforming the platform employees already use into a lightweight contact center. Every interaction is handled, tracked, and analyzed without leaving Teams. Key capabilities include: – Voice and SMS conversations managed natively within Microsoft Teams – Call routing with wait time announcements, queue positioning, and callback options – Shared SMS inbox and calling workflows for cross-team coordination – Post-call summaries and insights within Microsoft Teams – Real-time and historical visibility into customer interactions, with comprehensive tracking of activity, performance, and team effectiveness. RingCentral is further extending this experience with Operator Connect for Microsoft Teams, delivering global calling natively within the Teams environment. With coverage across 46 countries, integrated messaging and AI capabilities, and centralized provisioning through the Teams Admin Center, organizations can simplify telephony, consolidate providers, and deploy calling in minutes—all backed by RingCentral’s 99.999% uptime reliability. Together, CEB for Microsoft Teams and Operator Connect transform Microsoft Teams into a complete, globally capable communications and customer engagement platform—powered by RingCentral. Branded Messaging, international support for SMS notifications, Customer Engagement Bundle (CEB) for Microsoft Teams, and AIR for SMS inbox & call queues are currently available. RingCentral is accepting registration requests from early adopters for rich media support and Operator Connect for Microsoft Teams. International SMS for AUS is in controlled availability, with UK SMS coming soon. For additional information, please click here.