Black Friday is coming! This year it’s November 27th, roughly a week away. Are you planning on hitting the stores at 5am? Are you planning on sitting with your smartphone or tablet all day? In recent years, Black Friday has had less meaning because retailers have begun offering sales on Thanksgiving Day. Apparently, many of us need a break from watching the Lions lose and talking with our families. Big retailers watched our online habits and saw more and more of us online looking for upcoming deals. So, they decided to offer sales on Thanksgiving and even open the physical stores.
That was met with some backlash, as employees were forced to work on a holiday. Many consumers thought retailers were taking it too far in the name of sales. For that reason, Thanksgiving sales have been pulled back somewhat and there is a renewed focus on Black Friday and Cyber Monday. In fact, Black Friday has its own website! What a genius that girl or guy was to secure that URL back in the day. Just go to www.blackfriday.com and they aggregate many of the deals from major retailers. It’s a quick way to see what deals are coming down the pipe. You can also check out Dealnews.com and Bfads.net. According to RetailMeNot, 68% of Americans will be shopping during Black Friday weekend, spending an average of $743; an increase of 47% over what they spent in 2016!
If you are looking to save money and score some deals, here are 10 suggestions…
- Make A List! The biggest problem many of us have is we buy too many things on impulse. Make a list of each person you would like to buy for and how much you would like to spend…..and then stick to it.
- Research from the past five years proves that the number of deals hit a peak the week before Thanksgiving. That means get shopping now!
- Make sure you sign up for your favorite retailers’ email distribution lists, Instagram and Facebook feeds. They will be offering deals through here so make sure to watch for them.
- Many stores allow you to match a competitors price if you happen to miss a deal. So, if you are in a store and tempted to make a purchase, make sure you check prices on your smartphone and ask the store if they will match it before purchasing.
- Another site to check out is www.greentoe.com. Similar to Priceline, Greentoe allows you to name your own price for a variety of products including outdoor sporting goods, music, computers, photography and fitness.
- If you typically spend too much or are trying to manage credit card debt the easiest way to stay on a budget is to use your debit card. By spending within your means, you can avoid running up debt and having a shopping hangover in January.
- If you are responsible with your credit, now is the time to review your credit card point system. Figure out which card would be most advantageous to use. Cashback, double rewards points, and other perks can add up quickly. These can help you repay yourself after the holiday season.
- If you are an avid Pinterest fan and a bit creative, maybe try some crafts as presents. Kids love custom crafts…and do they really need ANOTHER transformer or baby doll? Gifts from the heart often mean more anyway. I have seen some amazing things done if you love to shop at Michaels and have that creative bone. Try one creative gift per person on your list and you probably save big bucks!
- Wisebread says that if you are looking for high demand items, they don’t go on sale until retailers have an idea of inventory levels. For instance, if you are looking for a high-end laptop you’ll want to wait until December 13, which is when computers are the cheapest of the season.
- When shopping online try this trick…Load an online shopping cart with your wants this week and then clear or empty it without making any purchases. Online algorithms watch this since they now know your interests. Isn’t AI a beautiful thing? If you don’t purchase right away, many retailers will then email you a coupon for up to 30% off for Black Friday.
Hopefully, these tips can save you a few bucks over the next few weeks. Happy Hunting!
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