The vast majority of businesses use Microsoft 365, but very few are getting the full value from it. Day to day, most teams stick to the essentials such as Word, Excel, Outlook and sometimes Teams. The rest is barely touched.

That means many small businesses are paying for tools they aren’t actually using, and missing out on simple ways to save time, cut admin and improve how their teams work. For small businesses, wasting money on tools which aren’t being used is a big issue.

Here are four Microsoft 365 tools we often see underused, and how they could make a real difference in your work.

Microsoft Lists

If your team is still using spreadsheets to manage things like asset tracking, onboarding checklists, job applicants or even customer requests, Microsoft Lists is worth looking into.

It’s straightforward to use, works seamlessly inside Teams or SharePoint, and keeps everything in one place. You can add dropdowns, due dates and categories, so your team can collaborate on a single live list instead of emailing versions of a spreadsheet back and forth.

We recently used this to create a packing list for one of our events. It meant that we could ensure everything was there on the day and that those responsible for packing knew exactly what to do.

Microsoft Forms

Whether you’re gathering feedback, running a quick poll or asking staff to submit holiday requests, Microsoft Forms makes it easy.

You can set one up in minutes and share it via Teams or email. The responses feed straight into Excel or Outlook therefore it saves time and removes the need to piece together answers from a handful of email threads.

For small teams that want a simple way to collect information, Forms is one of the most useful tools you’re probably not using.

Approvals in Teams

This one’s a huge time-saver. If your business is still approving quotes, invoices or holiday requests over email, Approvals in Teams is a much better alternative.

It lets you create, send and track approvals directly within Teams. You can use templates, receive instant notifications and keep a clear record of what’s been signed off. It’s more efficient and provides a much better audit trail than digging through old emails.

OneNote

OneNote more often than not gets overlooked, but it’s a brilliant tool for sharing knowledge. Think of it as a digital notebook that your whole team can access, edit and search.

We’ve helped clients use it for staff onboarding guides, how-to documents, handover notes and more. It’s cleaner than sharing Word documents, easier to manage and great for keeping everyone on the same page.

If your business is growing or you’re looking to improve internal communication, this is a great way to get started.

Making the Most of Microsoft 365

The Microsoft 365 suite is packed with features that can reduce admin, improve collaboration and help your team work smarter. Most of them are already included in your licence and it’s just a case of knowing what’s there and how to use it properly.

If you’re already using some Microsoft 365 features but not sure you’re getting the full value, we’d be happy to help. We can audit your processes and where Microsoft 365 may work best for you. For those looking to complete a G Suite to Microsoft 365 migration, we are able to facilitate this for you. Get in contact with us today to find out more. We take the gamble out of business technology.