Review: Ring2 Conferencing for BlackBerry

It’s time for the monthly sales meeting. As your company has grown across the country, it isn’t easy for everyone to assemble under one roof. This can become quite frustrating. You may find yourself playing elementary school roll call, or dealing with a noisy background from someone who has dialed in. Someone may put the call on hold or even not “show up.” In rare cases, you may even have an ex-employee, who has access, trying to sit in on the call.

There must be another way, something that will help you manage these time wasting and potentially unprofitable circumstances. But perhaps this innovation may cause more headaches; perhaps it’s too complex to be easily harnessed.

Innovation can be simple.

That’s what Michael Hughes at Ring2 instilled in me when he described their outstanding product. With Ring2 Conference Controller, they are the first company to provide an application that will allow your BlackBerry to act like a remote control for your audio conferences.

Ring2 focuses on the “pain points” that matter the most; Access, Visibility, Security and Control. They have won award after award, including a 2006 Entrepreneurial Company Award from Frost & Sullivan and Red Herring’s 100 Europe award for hottest emerging technology in Europe in 2007. This is one application that definitely deserves a glance at, so read to learn more about their Brain Child.

Hello?...Hello??

You’re able to operate Ring2 Conference Controller on your mobile device or on your PC, in real time. Though the application is a powerful tool, it is easily manipulated so you can focus on what the conference is about, rather than trying to manage it. The process is essentially the same as a usual conference call; each conference call attendee is provided with a toll free number and pass code. They dial in and then all they have to do is pay attention and be good little drones. Now you, the “Leader”, have the power in your hands.

Let’s look at the main interface:

easy to use main menu

Here you can Join or Monitor the Conference, Invite Participants into the call or change your settings. The meeting is about to start, and the first attendee dials in (what a keener). Once they join the call, you are sent a notification, informing you that someone has joined in on the call. All you have to do is click and voila! You can see who it is. Now you can join in on the call and keep them company. You won’t be able to dial in on your Berry (no voice & data simultaneously). With each new attendee joining, you will receive notifications. Their names appear on your Berry courtesy of your Address Book, so no more “Who just joined?”

Alright, looks like the gang’s all here. Now you can..oh…wait. Someone’s missing! Not to worry, as the Leader, you can add the lolly gagger straight from your Address Book. As you explain the direction of the Company to your staff, the sound of a construction site roars through the speakers. Someone must be driving through a construction zone. Grab your BlackBerry and mute the attendee and allow everyone else to enjoy your voice.

At some point during the call you get another notification. Who can be joining the call? Everyone’s here! An ex employee had the conference call info. Ring2 gives you the ability to remove someone from the call and protect your privacy. You can also see who has dropped off the call and/or start side conversations, choosing who can participate and put everyone else on hold. Those on hold will be entertained by music. Not the best music, mind you, but it’s better than dead air.

Ring 2 offers all the controls that you need with a simple click

All of these features are easily accessed from your BlackBerry, especially because you’re probably already fiddling with it. Ring2 doesn’t stop there folks! For later retrieval purposes, you have the ability to record the entire conference call as an MP3 file. Then email it off or use it yourself (maybe even save in on your BlackBerry).

Depending on the nature of the call, you may have to worry about billing a customer for the conference call. You will be able to assign billing codes to the call and send it off to your accounting department.

various options await you

you can send off calendar appointments or email
off the dial in number and pass code to your attendees

Though the service is available around the world, it is completely-hosted, so your company won’t have to install any hardware. Your BlackBerry needs to have an OS of 4.0 or higher. The size of this app is less than 500kb.

Any other topics that need to be addressed before we say goodbye?

There, the call has been completed. Ideas have been passed, jobs have been saved and the company’s profits will be through the roof. Monitor as each call drops off on your BlackBerry. Ring2 successfully puts you at ease and lets you do what you do best; focus on your business, not on the frustrations that can happen while on the call. There are a lot of applications that impress me, but I can honestly say that I enjoyed and appreciated the opportunity to jump into Ring2’s product. This is a must have for businesses of any size, who rely on this sort of communication.

Pros