Microsoft 365 features your team probably isn't using
Nine Microsoft 365 features that save time every week, from Word's search box to Outlook Quick Parts and Speaker Coach in PowerPoint.
Most businesses pay for Microsoft 365 and use four or five of its apps. People stick to what they know, which is fair, but it means time-savers sit unused. Here are nine worth showing your team.
1. Use the search box instead of hunting through menus
The search box at the top of Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook finds commands, not just help articles. Type “margins”, “orientation” or “insert table” and pick the command straight from the list.
2. Free stock images and icons
Word, Excel and PowerPoint include a library of images, icons and illustrations you can use in your own documents. Go to Insert > Pictures > Stock Images. It is a faster and safer option than grabbing pictures from a web search, which are often someone else’s property.
3. Outlook Quick Parts for text you type every week
If you keep typing the same paragraph (directions to the office, payment details, how to log a support request), save it once. In classic Outlook, highlight the text in an email, then Insert > Quick Parts > Save Selection to Quick Part Gallery. In the new Outlook, use My Templates instead. Next time it is two clicks.
4. Paste without the formatting
Text copied from a website or another document drags its fonts and colours with it. Press Ctrl+Shift+V in Word or Outlook to paste as plain text, or right-click and choose Keep Text Only.
5. Microsoft Forms for surveys and sign-up sheets
Forms builds a survey, quiz or booking sheet in minutes and collects the answers for you. Results open straight in Excel. Useful for customer feedback, staff surveys or a training sign-up.
6. Speaker Coach in PowerPoint
Before a presentation, use Slide Show > Rehearse with Coach. Speaker Coach listens and gives you private feedback on pace, filler words (“um”, “basically”) and whether you are just reading the slides.
7. Shared calendars and mailboxes instead of forwarding
A shared mailbox (accounts@, bookings@) lets several people work from one inbox without forwarding emails around or sharing a password. Shared calendars do the same for rosters, leave and room bookings.
8. Planner for small projects
Planner gives a team a simple board of tasks with owners and due dates. It is not a full project management tool, which is the point: most office projects (a move, a new starter, end-of-year jobs) do not need one.
9. Teams channels instead of reply-all
When a conversation involves more than three people, a Teams channel keeps the files, decisions and chat in one place. New people can read back through it instead of being forwarded a 40-message email thread.
A note on names
Microsoft renames things often. Yammer is now Viva Engage, Presenter Coach is now Speaker Coach, and the security tools have moved under the Microsoft Defender and Microsoft Purview names. If an older guide points to a feature you cannot find, it has probably been renamed.
Want your team getting more out of it?
Which of these you have depends on your Microsoft 365 plan. If you are not sure what you are paying for or whether it is the right plan, book a meeting and we will go through it with you.