Ruby®‘s Users FAQs

User FAQs

Billing

Q: How are my receptionist minutes calculated?

A:  Answering services are often easily recognizable as a “service.” They typically perform only the simplest tasks, such as forwarding messages, and tend to be impersonal. Virtual Receptionists, on the other hand, sound as if they’re right in your office, transferring calls live and relaying vital information to callers.

Receptionist minutes are billed in 30-second increments, and calls are rounded up to the nearest 30-second mark. As an example, if a call is ten seconds long, it will be billed as 30 seconds (or half of a receptionist minute).

For inbound calls, receptionist time is calculated starting from the time the receptionist receives the call and ending when a receptionist transfers the call through to someone or to voicemail, or otherwise disconnects because the call is over. We include hold time, and exclude the talk time once a call is transferred to you or your voicemail box.

For outbound calls, receptionist minutes are calculated by counting the time the Outbound Call Specialist is on the call, as well as the time they spend sending a follow-up email to fill you in on the results of the call.


Q: How will I know if it’s time to upgrade or downgrade my billing plan?

A: You are able to track your Receptionist Minutes on the free Ruby app (available for iPhone and Android) as well as from the call-ruby.com site once logged in. If you’re noticing that you are using far more or far less receptionist minutes than your plan covers, we are happy to upgrade or downgrade your billing plan.

Feel welcome to reach out about any billing questions at 866-611-7829 or billing@call-ruby.com. We’re happy to help!


Q: What are some tips for reducing the number of receptionist minutes I’m using?

We understand that sometimes you may find yourself looking for ways to reduce costs. We’re happy to help! There are a number of ways you may be able to reduce your receptionist minute usage:

Through Call-Forwarding:

You are welcome to forward and un-forward your line from Ruby as little or as often as you’d like. The more you forward to Ruby and have receptionists answering calls live, the higher your usage will be. If there is a time where you aren’t expecting many calls or wouldn’t mind handling them yourself, then you may want to temporarily un-forward your line. You won’t use any receptionist minutes if they’re not answering, after all!

If you’re using the *72 or 72# method for call-forwarding, then you may be using a receptionist minute when you forward or un-forward your line; that can add up if you forward and un-forward often! There are alternative forwarding methods that may reduce usage including asking your phone provider to set up remote call-forwarding. This forwarding method is typically free through most providers. Contact your telephone service provider for assistance or, if you have questions about your forwarding method, don’t hesitate to contact Customer Happiness!

Use Ruby Voicemail:

If your current account instructions include receptionists taking written messages or sending callers back to a voicemail in your phone system, you may want to consider using Ruby voicemail boxes instead! Connecting to a Ruby voicemail box is quick, seamless, and callers will hear your professionally recorded voicemail greeting.

Simplify Your Instructions:

If your current instructions include our receptionists performing extensive screening or gathering multiple pieces of information on calls, then your receptionist minute usage will likely be higher than average. Simplifying these instructions can drastically reduce the amount of time the receptionist spends on the line with your callers.


Messages, caller data, and status

Q: How can I see the caller ID and other information from my most recent call?

A: The easiest way to see caller ID and other call details is by checking your call history on the free Ruby app (available for iPhone and Android) or once logged in to the call-ruby.com site.

The App:

In the app, simply click on the “Activity” button and a list of calls will appear. Click on the call that interests you and you’ll find the caller’s name, phone number (caller ID), the caller’s company name if provided, and who the caller asked for. If there’s a message or voicemail associated with the call, you’ll see those details as well.

From the call-ruby.com site:

Once logged in, simply click “Calls” under the “Activity” header. Click on the call that you’d like to learn more about. At the top, you’ll find caller ID. Additionally, you can see the result of the call and who the caller asked for. If there are any messages or voicemails associated with the call, you can review those as well.



Q: How do I read my messages and email notifications?

A: Your messages contain a lot of helpful information!

From Name: This is the caller’s name.
From Number: This is the phone number the caller provided the receptionist.
From Company: This is the caller’s company name.

[In this space, you’ll find any additional information gathered by the receptionist.]

Actions: This shows more information about the call. You may see phrases like, “Please Call,” “Returned Your Call,” “Sent to Voicemail,” or “Declined to leave Message, just FYI.”
To: This is who the message was sent to.
Date: This is the date and time the message was sent.
Caller ID: This is the caller ID.
Ruby Receptionist: This is the name of the receptionist who took the message.

If you’ve signed up for Email Notifications, this is what they’ll look like:

Call Result: This is the result of the call. You can tell whether it resulted in a message, it was connected to someone in the office, it was a hang up, if it was a solicitation call, or if it was simply an FAQ handled by the receptionist.

Profile: This is who the call was meant for.

Gathered Info: This is any information the receptionist gathered when screening the call.

Caller ID Number: This is the caller ID number.

Caller ID Name: This is the name associated with the caller ID.

Connect Number: If the call were connected to someone, this will show the phone number it was connected to.

Receptionist: This is the name of the receptionist who handled the call.

Call Start Time: This is the date and time the call began.

Receptionist Time: This is your receptionist minute usage for this call. It’s the amount of time the receptionist attended to your call live.

Call Time: This is the total call length including any time after the receptionist was no longer a part of the call. Ruby does not bill for talk time after a call is transferred.

Company: This is your company name. If Ruby answers for more than one of your companies, this will tell you which one the call is associated with.


Q: What does “FAQ, Receptionist handled” mean?

A: This indicates that the caller asked for a simple piece of information and the receptionist was able to provide it. Most commonly, this includes information like your business hours, company address, or website. We’re happy to take care of answering those simple questions for you!


Q: When should I update my Status?

A: You are welcome to update your Status anytime! Most often, you’ll want to update your Status when the instructions you’d like our receptionists to follow are different from the usual instructions. Are you out of the office traveling, heading to a meeting, or feeling under the weather? We can certainly relay this information to callers on a temporary basis along with any other specifics you’d like. From taking messages when we’d normally connect calls or vice versa, to directing calls to someone else entirely – we’re happy to accommodate your request!

To update your Status, access the “Status” section of the free Ruby app (available for iPhone and Android) or log in to the call-ruby.com site.


Service offering and legal

Q: Do you offer chat services for my website?

A: We do! Ruby offers 24/7 live, professional chat services for your website visitors. You’ll find helpful information about the service at https://www.call-ruby.com/live-chat-service/. You can sign up for the service or ask questions by calling 866-611-7829 or emailing the sales team at hello@call-ruby.com.


Q: Can receptionists take down sensitive information from my callers (SSN, credit card info)?

A: Due to liability concerns, and in order to ensure your callers’ information is secure, Ruby does not record sensitive information like credit card numbers, social security numbers, and driver’s license numbers. We’re happy to direct these types of calls to someone in your office!


Q: Can Ruby make outbound calls for me?

A: Absolutely! To make an outbound call request, send us an email at staff@call-ruby.com with the specifics of your request (the name of the person we’re calling, their contact number, and the information we’re relaying or collecting), and we’ll be glad to make the call for you. Afterward, we’ll send an email with the details so you know exactly what happened during the call. This feature is especially helpful if you’re looking for help with appointment reminder calls or to pass along some information to your clients!

Outbound call minutes are bundled into your monthly billing plan and are considered Receptionist Minutes. The outbound call team is available Monday through Friday, 5am to 6pm.


Q: Does Ruby record calls?

A: Ruby is unable to record calls due to state law. Doing so would require us to play a message at the beginning of every call letting callers know that they are being recorded. Because this would take away from our ability to appear as your in-house receptionist, we do not offer this service.

You can, of course, use an outside service to record your calls! A simple Google search will yield lots of results, and if you’d like more information, please feel welcome to contact Customer Happiness.


Q: Does Ruby screen out solicitors?

A: Yes! Our default is to always screen solicitation calls when no one is asked for by name. For example, if a caller says, “I’d like to talk to the owner,” our receptionists will take this as a signal the call may be a solicitation.

We screen solicitations by first asking, “Is this a solicitation?” If the caller says “yes,” we’ll politely ask the solicitor to remove your business from their calling list. If the caller says, “no,” we’ll err to the side of caution and route the call based on your account instructions to ensure that we don’t accidentally screen out a real call. Of course, you can count on Ruby to screen out recorded solicitations as well.

If you’re looking for more screening, we can screen more heavily. Conversely, if you’d prefer we accept all solicitations we can do that too. Feel welcome to reach out to our Customer Happiness team for details!


Q: How does Ruby’s bilingual service work?

A: Ruby is a bilingual English/Spanish service. Generally, the process works like this: when a caller begins speaking Spanish, or if they request Spanish assistance, our English-speaking receptionists are trained to say, “Un momento, por favor,” and transfer them to our bilingual team.  The caller will briefly hear hold music until a bilingual receptionist answers the call in Spanish: “Muchas gracias por esperar, como puedo ayudarle?” (Thank you for holding, how may I help you?). The bilingual receptionist will then handle the call to conclusion.

There is no additional cost for this service. If you’d like for us to set up specific instructions for your Spanish speaking callers, we’d be delighted to. This includes routing Spanish speaking callers to a designated person in the office, connecting them to a Spanish voicemail box, or even letting Spanish speaking callers know that no one in the office speaks Spanish if that’s the case. Reach out to Customer Happiness for more information!


Q: What hours are receptionists available to answer? What happens after hours?

Our receptionists are available to cheerfully answer live Monday through Friday 5am to 9pm Pacific Time and Saturday through Sunday 6am to 6pm Pacific Time. You are welcome to customize the timeframe for which we’re answering your calls specifically. We recommend simply choosing to have Ruby answer live during your business hours.

Outside of the time Ruby answers live, your calls will be handled according to the afterhours solution you’ve chosen. This can either be routing calls to an afterhours voicemail, an auto-attendant, or to another phone number that isn’t already forwarded to us.


Q: What is Ruby’s confidentiality agreement?

A: At Ruby, we take confidentiality very seriously. All receptionists sign confidentiality clauses in both our employee handbook and computer use policy at the beginning of employment and annually thereafter.

The paragraph reads:

Employees are not to disclose, except as part of employment, any confidential information pertaining to the business of Ruby Receptionists, or its clients. This includes any proprietary information, financial information, company development goals or any information regarding Ruby Receptionists clients. Employees should take care to ensure that any client information gained in performance of professional services be kept in utmost confidence. Violation of confidentiality policy may result in disciplinary action up to and including termination.


Q: Will Ruby verify the spelling of all names in my messages?

A: To create the warmest and friendliest experience for callers, we do not verify spelling of names by default. We find that we sound much more like your in-house receptionist if we act with as much familiarity with your callers as possible. We’ve also found that verifying spelling can be off-putting for callers, especially those who call frequently. We always do our best to get accurate names, of course!

We understand that accurate spelling is a top priority for some companies. If you’d like us to verify spelling on every message, we’re happy to do so by request! Reach out to our Customer Happiness team for more information.


Technical

Q: How do I forward my phones?

A: There are several ways to forward your phones to Ruby!

*Feeling overwhelmed at the thought of call-forwarding? Consider porting your published number to Ruby! To start the process of porting, simply reach out to our Customer Happiness team. We’ll walk you through the rest!

Forwarding an iPhone: If you’re forwarding an iPhone, typically you can follow the below process:

  1. From the “Settings” menu, select “Phone.”
  2. From the “Phone” menu, select “Call Forwarding.”
  3. Once the “Call Forwarding” menu is opened, you’ll find a slider that allows you to turn forwarding on and off.
  4. Toggling this feature to “On” will prompt you to enter the number you would like to forward to.
  5. Once you’ve entered that number, calls are forwarded!

Certain cell phone service providers don’t allow access to forwarding settings through their iPhones, but there is an easy workaround! Simply dial *72 and your forwarding number as one string of numbers, then hit send. When the call is answered, the feature has been activated. And, of course, Customer Happiness is here for you should you need extra help!

*72/72#: This method of call-forwarding works with most traditional (non-cellular) phone providers.

To Activate Call Forwarding:

  1. Lift the handset on the line you wish to forward and listen for a dial tone.
  2. Press *72. (In some cases, it’s 72# – try it next if *72 doesn’t work out).
  3. At the tone, dial the telephone number that you want your calls forwarded to (typically your Ruby phone number).
  4. When the call is answered, the feature has been activated!

To Cancel Call Forwarding:

  1. Lift the handset on the line you wish to un-forward and listen for a dial tone.
  2. Press *73. (In some cases, it’s 73# – try it next if *73 doesn’t work out).
  3. You will typically hear a series of beeps – usually three – followed by the dial tone, indicating that forwarding has been turned off.

VoIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol)For VoIP service, you’re typically able to forward your phone line by accessing your account settings online. If you’re unsure of where that setting lives on your phone provider’s website, reach out to Customer Happiness and we’ll be happy to help walk you through it!

Call Forward / Busy No Answer: Sometimes referred to as delayed call forwarding, this type of call forwarding allows calls to ring to you directly before forwarding to Ruby. It’s perfect if you’re looking to use Ruby as a back up to your current receptionist or if you enjoy answering calls every once in a while! Simply reach out to your phone provider and they can activate this forwarding feature for you.

Our Customer Happiness team is delighted to help if you have any questions about call-forwarding or if you’re interested in porting your published number to us.


Q: How do I integrate with Clio, Lexicata, or Rocket Matter?

A: You can now link your Ruby call information to your Clio, Lexicata (Clio Grow), or Rocket Matter accounts! Using Clio, you can associate your Ruby call data, messages, and voicemails to specific case files. All of your client communication can be found in one place! Ruby’s call data also automatically syncs into Lexicata (Clio Grow), prepopulating the Quick Intake form with details like name, phone, and caller notes.

To sync your account, head to the customer portal homepage and click, “Applications.” Click on the software you’d like to sync and then click, “Authorize.”

For more detailed instructions and information about integrating Ruby with Clio, download our fact sheet.

For more details regarding Lexicata, download the Lexicata fact sheet.

For more details regarding Rocket Matter, download the Rocket Matter fact sheet.