As popularity of BeeTexting grows within RingCentral, we wanted to take a moment to address a common question we receive from BeeTexting users relating to how these products work together -- especially the shared inbox feature. 

BeeTexting and the SMS Shared Inbox

BeeTexting, a product and partner of RingCentral, provides advanced SMS functionalities tailored for business needs. One of its standout features is the SMS shared inbox, which allows a team of people to respond to customer messages sent to a single phone number. This tool is invaluable for managing high-volume customer interactions efficiently and ensuring timely responses.

Logging Messages from a Shared Inbox

A common question we receive is, "Will my messages from a shared inbox be logged?" The answer is yes, but there’s an important detail to consider.

The Mechanism Behind the Shared Inbox

In RingCentral, a phone number can be owned by one person only. This means that the assigned individual is the sole entity capable of sending and receiving messages from that number. BeeTexting addresses this limitation with a clever solution that mimics a shared inbox environment.

BeeTexting routes incoming messages into an inbox accessible to multiple team members. When someone replies to an SMS message from this shared inbox, BeeTexting takes their response and sends it using the credentials and identity of the individual assigned to the SMS number. Consequently, all SMS messages sent this way will be logged using App Connect, but will be exclusively attributed to the person who owns the phone number, not necessarily the individual who typed the message response within BeeTexting.

Implications for CRM Logging and Audit Trails

While this approach ensures that messages are logged, it introduces a potential challenge for businesses that require an accurate audit trail in their CRM systems. Since responses are always attributed to the assigned phone number owner, the CRM will log all messages exclusively under that identity. This might not accurately reflect which team member composed the response, thereby affecting compliance and audit requirements.

For many users, this solution may be perfectly acceptable, particularly if the primary goal is to facilitate team collaboration and maintain a seamless customer communication history. However, if your business needs require an accurate representation of individual user activity in your CRM, this logging mechanism may present some limitations.