Broadvoice | GoContact vs. OpenPhone

I think it depends on the services you enroll in. Broadvoice could be used for basic business perfectly, but allowing for tracking calls and recordings makes it great for businesses where legalities come into play. Were I to leave the firm I am with, I would hope to either utilize a service that offers everything Broadvoice does, or just continue with Broadvoice itself.

If you have more than 2 people in your organization, then this will save you so much time. Delegation is the key to starting a business. Even when you're a 1 person show, being able to present to your user base the differentiation of options for client communications is critical. As a founder, feeling compelled to be always on is something I strive not to be. OpenPhone gives you that flexibility. I have found it to be less appropriate in complex HIPPA compliant areas, but that is it. OpenPhone really does seem to suit an open array of use cases.

Incentivized

• Broadvoice is quick to furnish the phone numbers before we even have the store built.
• Broadvoice gives us temporary numbers until the port occurs.
• Broadvoice monitors our accounts so we Dont have to.
• Most times we get the replacement phones within 1-2 work days.
• Broadvoice is very easy to work with.

• It's great for texting.
• It's great for making phone calls. You get a new, unique phone number and can text/call from phone or desktop.
• UI is great and really intuitive.

Incentivized

• The terminology used in the self-service drop-down options for outbound greetings is akin to reading a foreign language; it's hard to tell which drop-down option will yield the appropriate results for the appropriate time periods (during or after hours). I'm also still not sure whether I should set all outbound messages using my b-hive account, or if it will work if I do that from my phone handset.
• The TCR brand registration process is difficult. I followed the instructions to register my brand, and after months of checking to see if it was verified, I was told I needed to provide a 147C letter, which certifies my EIN number. I am a sole proprietor, with no employees, so I am not required to have an EIN. If I file taxes using my SSN, I would think a W9 would suffice. This has held up my ability to use the texting platform. It would have been good to know upfront that an EIN would be needed in order for the registration verification to process -- like maybe getting an error message of some sort instead of just a "status."
• Overall, there seems to be way too many sub-sections within the b-hive screens. To go back from the call log to what I view as the main dashboard, you have to click on "portal," which is okay once you know that it takes you back to the page that has all the tabs for "reports, voicemails, communicator," etc.

Incentivized

• Web app could work better in my experience
• Pricing could be lower
• Somehow connect with whatsapp or / and other messaging apps that people commonly use

Incentivized

Our last phone system was very outdated and we were left not getting calls that we needed nor having a seamless way to change voicemail or to get voicemail if we were out of the office for longer periods of time. Broadvoice has erased these issues and has really made our agency more responsive.

Broadvoice has been a great investment so far! Its system allows you to easily handle multiple lines & provides you with many useful, easy-to-use, features. It delivers faxes right to your email inbox, how much easier can it get? Through their app, it enables you to easily determine if the call is business or personal related. And you are able to answer calls no matter where you are

Incentivized

In my experience, App features are buggy and confusing, and they often don't match the descriptions and screenshots in their documentation. In fact, many of their help links go to 404 "page not found" errors. In my experience, there are frequent outages and quality issues. My customers prefer to talk to me on a different line, because they find it difficult to understand me on OpenPhone.

AWAYS available to assist when I call. I could not be happier about that!

Incentivized

For me, there have been too many outages to rate this higher than "1 worst".

Any issues are usually overcome fairly quickly. We don't utilize reports offered by the system - we are a small company and the monitoring that would provide is just not something we would utilize.

Incentivized

I think the platform is buggy and confusing. There are numerous outages. And the call quality, according to my customers, is atrocious.

Laura H. our Service Coordinator was exceptionally helpful when the inevitable hiccups occurred along the way. She calmly sought out solutions that kept the project moving so that we could meet our move-out/move-in deadlines. Also, their 24/7 Business Support line is staffed with knowledgeable people that answer my questions quickly and accurately.

Incentivized

In my experience, their support feels like the opposite of support. They send you in circles, never directly answer questions, provide vague suggestions with unwanted platitudes, and they often take days between responses to provide that. For me, it's a frustrating experience that leaves you with a net loss of time and energy versus before you reached out to them. In my opinion, you definitely don't get "support".

The in-person was done by phone and was GREAT!

Incentivized

Overcame obstacles of everyone being in different places. Trainer was excellent (do not remember her name!). Open to all questions no matter how technical. The feedback from my colleagues were they were happy

Incentivized

It was straightforward to set up. The phone was delivered prior to installation. The script and routing of calls were established prior to installation as well. The on-site technician installed each phone and offered training to anyone who asked. The main setup for hours, calls, and extensions was already set up via online meeting, making the phone install on-site a seamless experience.

Incentivized

We've had a few phone vendors over the years and their main item, the phone, usually worked. Now past that, all other features or needs were hardly ever met. With Broadvoice, our experience has been amazing. The call quality, the ease of use on the admin portal and b-hive app, the flexibility of implementing new users. And if something ever seems to stump us, we can quickly reach out to support via email or phone and they are amazingly fast to respond and resolve the issue.

Incentivized

OpenPhone has an easier user interface than Grasshopper. Years ago when I was using Grasshopper, I recall that their user interface looked antiquated and full of complications. They would also update the interface just as everyone was getting used to using it. OpenPhone has many more functions. Grasshopper's app did not offer basic functions such as in-app texting between team members, and its call transfer function was incredibly complicated to use. In my opinion, Grasshopper was an inferior service/product in almost every way.

Incentivized

Answered in previous question

In my experience, Billing lacks transparency, and they have made billing errors (overcharging me) since I started using them. I think the "trust registration" is an insane ripoff charging around $20 for every attempt. Crazy.

We keep adding phones to each of restaurants every month

In my experience, I can't even scale up to sending messages from a single number because of their broken and messed up "trust registration" system.

• Sadly I can't quite gather any hard numbers since my use of the product don't extend into the admin level where I can see everything. I can say that since installing the phone at my desk though, I've been more reachable by other staff and therefore more present with current happenings in the workplace.
• It took a while to get a line for my desk, so I can compare the before and after very clearly. Communication is like night and day, and any questions or problems other coworkers had that in the past they may have had to deal with themselves, they can now reliably reach me and have a convenient option to. This has improved the relationships between me and others at the workplace.

• Provided us with a simple, yet robust phone system for our small business
• Price can be lower for premium, and for multiple users

Incentivized