Most small businesses open Outlook, Powerpoint, Word and Excel, and stop there, missing time‑saving apps that are already included in every Microsoft Business Basic or Standard plan.
Below we’ve highlighted 8 highly underused Microsoft gems, some simple actions you can try today to get the ideas flowing, and a quick note on how Repautomate can train your team or even build the whole system for you.
1. Microsoft Lists: Smart trackers in a click
Spin up issue logs, asset registers or onboarding check‑lists with built‑in colour coding and reminders. Start from a template—no formatting headaches—and share the live list in Teams so everyone sees the same status bar. (Microsoft Support, Microsoft Learn)
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2. Microsoft Forms: Easy surveys & quizzes
Drag‑and‑drop questions, turn on skip logic so people only see what matters, and watch answers turn into auto‑generated charts the moment they hit “Submit.” (Microsoft Support)
3. Microsoft Planner: Visual task boards
Plan on a Kanban board today; switch to Timeline (Gantt) view tomorrow without moving a single card. Premium adds dependencies and status snapshots for bigger projects. All of it lives inside Teams chat. (nBold, TECHCOMMUNITY.MICROSOFT.COM)
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4. Microsoft Sway: Beautiful web stories
Drop in text, pictures or video and Sway turns them into a scrolling mini‑site that looks great on any phone or laptop—perfect for proposals, newsletters or reports. Share with a simple link; update anytime. (sway.cloud.microsoft)
5. Microsoft Bookings: Self‑serve scheduling
Clients pick an open slot, get automatic reminders, and join via a pre‑made Teams link. Bookings checks your Outlook calendar first, so double‑booking is impossible. (Microsoft Learn)
6. Microsoft Whiteboard: Shared sketch pad
An infinite canvas for quick brainstorms or long‑term planning. Add sticky notes, draw, or paste screenshots while everyone edits together inside Teams or a browser. (Microsoft Support, Microsoft Support)
7. Microsoft Loop: Live blocks that stay in sync
Create a table, checklist or ideas list once; the same block stays updated in Outlook, Teams and Word. No more copy‑paste chaos. (Microsoft Support)
8. Power Automate: Hands‑free workflows
Power Automate is the hidden super‑power you’ll get instant, and exponential, value from.
Simply put, it lets you connect any of your Microsoft apps (plus 1 000+ third‑party services via pre‑built connectors) so data moves automatically between them. (Microsoft Learn) Automation is the glue of software.
Picture this: an invoice hits your inbox and, without a click, your spreadsheet updates, your finance channel pings, and a reminder task appears. Imagine the hours that saves over a month!
With Microsoft 365 Business Basic you already have capacity for about 6 000 automated actions per user every day, and you can scale up to 40 000 per user on a Premium licence when your flows really take off. (Microsoft Learn, Microsoft Learn)
Not sure where to start? Automation happens to be our specialty.
Actionable Ideas
- Make an asset list: Open Lists → “Asset tracker” template → share with your team.
- Collect customer feedback: Build a 3‑question Form and watch results chart themselves.
- Visualise your to‑dos: Add a Planner board to your main Teams channel.
- Create a quick update page: Paste last quarter’s highlights into Sway and send the link.
- Publish a booking link: Turn on Bookings and let prospects book a demo without email ping‑pong.
So before you buy another subscription, dive into your Microsoft 365 menu!
Need a hand?
Repautomate offers:
- Hands‑on training: so staff use these tools effectively.
- Custom builds: from automated onboarding flows to project dashboards.
- Full implementation: Procedure and change‑management support so you see fast growth while we minimise risk.
Sources
- https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/list-templates-in-microsoft-365-62f0e4cf-d55d-4f89-906f-4a34e036ded1 “List templates in Microsoft 365”
- https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoftteams/manage-lists-app “Manage the Lists app for your organization – Microsoft Teams”
- https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/use-branching-logic-in-microsoft-forms-16634fda-eddb-44da-856d-6a8213f0d8bb “Use branching logic in Microsoft Forms”
- https://nboldapp.com/beginners-guide-to-planner-premium-timelines-dependencies-and-more/ “Beginner’s Guide to Planner Premium: Timelines, Dependencies …”
- https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/plannerblog/the-new-microsoft-planner-begins-roll-out-to-general-availability/4101056 “The new Microsoft Planner begins roll out to General Availability”
- https://sway.cloud.microsoft/ “Microsoft Sway | Create visually striking newsletters, presentations …”
- https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/5046150/sync-outlook-calendar-with-bookings-calendar-to-pr “Sync Outlook Calendar with Bookings Calendar to prevent …”
- https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/topic/unleash-ideas-on-microsoft-whiteboard-s-infinite-canvas-d344e700-b90f-4bdf-8fb8-81d4c60298ca “Unleash ideas on Microsoft Whiteboard’s infinite canvas”
- https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/supercharge-your-hybrid-workplace-with-microsoft-whiteboard-b051886a-b12f-4ebe-ae18-a8100fa72b1f “Supercharge your hybrid workplace with Microsoft Whiteboard”
- https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/get-to-know-loop-components-fc574b2a-ead0-4d7e-bb56-94dd6469ebcf “Get to know Loop components – Microsoft Support”
- https://visualpathblogs.com/powerapps-powerautomate/power-automate-limits-that-most-users-overlook/ “Power Automate Limits That Most Users Overlook – Visualpath Blogs”
- https://www.microsoft.com/en-za/microsoft-365/business/compare-all-microsoft-365-business-products “Compare Microsoft 365 Business Plans and Pricing”