People put too much emphasis on spells and not enough on skill checks.
Skill checks and spells should reward creativity equally. Spells should not entirely replace creative solutions or skill checks.
People look at a spell like Suggestion and use it in social situations when the character that's casting Suggestion should already be good enough at Persuassion that Suggestion shouldn't be advantageous. Non-Charisma-based characters should use Suggestion, Charisma-based characters should rely on their skills.
If you ever think a skill check shouldn't be used and that a mind-altering spell like Persuassion should, you're probably breaking the game.
Suggestion shouldn't be able to do anything that Persuasion (or a similar skill check) couldn't do. It's basically flipping the skill check from a character-centric skill check (relying on the character's Persuasion skill) to a wisdom-based attack (relying on the target to fail a WIS saving throw).
Spells are limited by their literal description, while skill checks shouldn't. The skill check should cover a wider range of effects and it might be important to think about the powerlevel of skill checks early in the game vs later in the game. Basically, balance skill checks against spells and spell slots.
Lower level spells further imply these spells shoudl be used as a last resort and not as the "go-to" solution. Charm Person even says the person will know you used it on them (emphasis mine):
Charm Person
You attempt to charm a humanoid you can see within range. It must make a Wisdom saving throw, and does so with advantage if you or your companions are fighting it. If it fails the saving throw, it is charmed by you until the spell ends or until you or your companions do anything harmful to it. The charmed creature regards you as a friendly acquaintance. When the spell ends, the creature knows it was charmed by you.
Do you think someone will be happy or okay with a person using a spell on them to influence them? I hope not. But would a person be okay with falling for a smooth-talking (possibly attractive) person? Yep, happens all the time -- they even know it's happening and are typically okay with it because it's their choice.
I like to think of it as spells are the standard tip 15% even if the service is bad because society tells you that you have to and skill checks are the tip 18-20% because you were happy with the service/experience. Spells get the job done and they fix/avoid bad role-playing but they should never replace it.
Let's look compare some spells with their skill-check equivalents...
Knock vs Thieves' Tools
We don't expect an Arcane Trickster to take Knock as a 2nd level spell when they are already incredibly skilled with Thieves' Tools... but Knock would allow them to basically pass the skill check.
So why are we expecting Bards to use Suggestion instead of a skill check?
Suggestion vs Persuasion
A common misconception with Suggestions is that the words being spoken are the verbal components of the spell, that's not the case. One of the most cited examples of Suggestion in popular culture is Obi-won Kenobi's "these are not the droids you are looking for" scene. If we were to follow the rules of spellcasting, he'd have to chant some Arcane mumbo-jumbo first, then say that famous line.
There's absolutely room for metamagic here, this is a perfect situation for Subtle Spell... and you're doing sorcerers and metamagic adepts a disservice by allowing Suggestion to be used in social situations without a cost.
Distort Value vs Persuasion
This is one of my favorite examples because it clearly illustrates my point. Haggling is a commonly accepted practice at most tables and that rewards Charisma-based characters and the Persuasion skill.
What if I were to tell you that you can't haggle for something because the spell Distort Value exists and you should use that instead? This is basically what happens when people look at Distort Value and say it's a bad spell but look at Charm Person and say it's a decent spell. Suggestion basically covers both sitautions, so it's better considering versatility alone.