Google reports that 88% of consumers research before purchasing. That's why in a prior blog on hosted PBX system reviews, we provided a list of 5 websites for our potential customers to check.
Unfortunately, though, there are a lot of fake reviews out there. Weeding through the blindingly positive reviews for real feedback can be tough. Plus, when you do come across a negative review, it can be difficult to discern whether the customer had similar circumstances to your business. For example, what if the customer’s network wasn’t stable, and they took it out on the service?
Here, I'll cover the top 5 virtual phone system reviews that are red flags, no matter what the circumstances are. Note: providers shall remain nameless.
One of the worst feelings as a customer is the feeling of helplessness. If you’re unhappy with your service, for whatever reason, being bound by a contract is the worst. I found this review online (provider shall remain nameless):
“This company either needs to provide the service they sold us or allow us out of their contract… This company is actually hurting my business and it just does not matter to them. I will be looking for a new phone provider.”
Yikes. If you read a review like this, ask the provider to see their contract terms, or seek a provider with no contracts.
If you’re reading review after review on a website, and no one has anything bad to say, the reviews are probably fake.
Review by Sally: “Love love love this service! Nothing bad to say!!!”
Review by Bob: “This service is outstanding!”
Review by Joe: “[Provider] is FANTASTIC.”
Either the Teletubbies are writing cloud VoIP reviews, or cloud VoIP marketers are.
If you're thinking, hey, this is similar to #1— yes, but not quite the same. Particularly for the providers with “No contracts or cancellation fees.”
Some virtual phone system providers will tell you there are not contracts or fees, but you read the fine print, you may just find some. For example, I read a review wherein the VoIP provider had advertised "no cancellation fees," but this did not extend to their fax service partner (which the reviewer bought along with the VoIP service.) The reviewer spent countless hours on the phone and ended up paying over $100 to port out each fax phone number.
That brings me to a second point: Keep in mind that phone number porting is a process that takes time, no matter which provider you're choosing. Beware of a provider that pretends it doesn't and fails to give you the facts on what to expect.
If you read a review that describes jumping through flaming-fire hoops to cancel the service, consider this a red flag. What should you do? Read the terms of service fine print and ask questions.
Tricky. This is a tricky one because hosted VoIP service relies heavily on your network quality, and there are businesses that have connectivity challenges. While this is certainly a frustrating experience with VoIP, it can result in unjust virtual phone system reviews. We’ve experienced it and seen our fair share of our competitors experiencing it as well. So how do you find the red flags?
If you see multiple accounts of outages and for long periods of time, that may just be the provider after all. A good question to ask the provider: Can I see a history of your service interruptions and RFOs?
No cloud business service is perfect. But when there’s an issue, transparency and accountability are key. If you see more than 1 review where downtime with little-or-no explanation occurred, investigate whether the provider has a systems status page and whether it ever changes. Ask the provider: What happens in the event of a service interruption? How will you communicate with me?
By process of elimination, if the reviewer switched VoIP providers with the same office network conditions, there was probably something wrong with the first provider. UNLESS, the second provider required the reviewer to purchase dedicated bandwidth and/or new network equipment (e.g. router).
When a service provider is acquired by a larger entity, there are typically some pains along the way— whether it’s integrating offerings, transitioning departments, or even rectifying different terms of service. Actual review:
“Hopefully this review will help someone else from going through what I have... I was a customer of [Provider A] for 5 + years until [Provider B] bought / merged w/them... In any event the last 6 mths has been a disaster…”
If you find recent reviews describing issues resulting from an acquisition or merger, I recommend becoming an empowered buyer: Read about the acquisition event. Then, prepare questions for the sales rep to see if they have resolved the hiccups. If a salesperson can’t reasonably answer inquiries regarding the current and future state of the platform/technology, pricing, and support, look elsewhere.
Reviews are enlightening, but they are also full of colored opinions. When researching a virtual PBX provider, here are 4 things you can do to get an accurate picture before you buy: