I'm sure Jill Phelps would've been willing to give her an audition!
I actually think Bransford was talented - she had the same physicality of Carly that Sarah Brown had, which Tamara hadn't. But JB was simply not suited to be playing that kind of heavy lead on a top soap like GH. JFP clearly got her the gig because she was a pal from OLTL, and it was a mistake from the jump. She could not compete with the GH stars in terms of presence.
Further, according to Kelly Monaco, Bransford actually went full method and hit her in their epic catfight scene (probably her one crowning achievement as Carly, and very evocative of Brown). Kelly was not pleased.