There are a lot of programs packed into Microsoft 365 beyond the core productivity tools that make up the Office suite (Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint). One of those “extras” that many people pass right by is OneNote.
OneNote might sound like a note-taking application or something akin to Notepad on Windows, but it’s much more powerful than that. If used to its fullest, OneNote can be a place to organize all your projects and ideas, a platform for collaboration and brainstorming, a place to record meetings, and much more.
A challenge that many small and mid-sized businesses face is cloud overload. They begin using one cloud app, then another, and before they know it, they are paying for subscriptions to several different cloud platforms.
Companies spend an average of $2,623 per employee per year on cloud applications.
Many times, there are additional apps companies are paying for that are redundant. They already have them in another cloud solution but don’t realize it.
OneNote is an example of an app that can take the place of other SaaS tools, such as a task manager, collaborative whiteboard, organization application (like Evernote), and more.
Here are several reasons to take a look at OneNote in Microsoft 365 and incorporate it into your workflow.
Digital Notebook to Keep You Organized
OneNote allows you to create a hierarchy of notebooks, sections, and pages to organize all types of information. The app is not restricted to only text, you can go crazy pulling in information of all types.
Data you can enter or import into OneNote includes:
- Text
- Images
- Videos
- Audio notes
- Webpages
- Files
- Checklists
- Table
- Stickers
- Equations
- And more
OneNote image from Microsoft
Creative Freedom for Your Page Notes
You can place details anywhere you like on the page. You’re not locked into a specific area to type like you are in a text editor. You have the creative freedom to put text in one area, a checklist in another, and an image in another.
This is great for brainstorming ideas and designs because you can do a quick draft in OneNote that looks as close as possible to your finished idea.
You also have the ability to use a virtual pencil for drawing and markups.
Take Text & Audio Meeting Notes
Take Text & Audio Meeting NotesOneNote allows you to take meeting notes and connect those to a meeting you already have planned in Outlook. In OneNote, just go to Insert > Meeting Details, and then choose the appropriate meeting.
You can take text notes that will be attached to that meeting, you can also click the Audio button at the top menu to record the audio from a meeting that you can refer back to later.
All meeting notes are kept in OneNote, easily accessible and searchable.
Share Notebooks & Collaborate
You can keep some OneNote Notebooks to yourself and choose others to share with colleagues, friends, or family. The ability to share notebooks allows for real-time collaboration where everyone can brainstorm together.
This is perfect for managing projects or planning a special event. OneNote notebooks are accessible from any device.
Find Your Notes Easily
OneNote has a powerful search feature that allows you to quickly locate a note stored in one of your notebook pages. You can also use tags to mark certain notes as “Important” or part of a To-Do list.
Clear Your Inbox by Emailing to OneNote
Often tasks or project-related information is sent via email. People flag those emails or add them to a mail folder, but often they’re hard to find later after a few more hundred emails have come in.
If an email comes in about a project you’re working on, you can simply email the message to your OneNote notebook and the entire email will be stored and organized, so you can safely delete it from your inbox.
Once you set up your email address on this page, then you can email to “me@onenote.com” and your emails will populate into the designated notebook.
Make Your Pages Look the Way You Want
Do you prefer blue pastel for your page background? Need some rule lines to keep you better organized? You have both options in OneNote, so you can make your pages look exactly the way you like. You can even do gridlines.
Intuitive & Easy to Use
OneNote is intuitive and easy for new users. You simply start typing or dragging items onto a notebook page and you can see a box surrounding what you’ve added. Those content boxes can be moved anywhere you like or deleted with a click.
There’s a very low learning curve, so you can start getting organized with OneNote right away.
Looking to Get More Out of Microsoft 365?
Rocky Knoll Technologies can help your Charlotte area business get the most out of your Microsoft 365 subscription. Looking to streamline your cloud workflow? We can help!
Contact us today to schedule a free consultation. Call 704.594.7292 or reach us online.
