Preparing for Black Friday

Believe it or not, Black Friday is only about a month away.  It falls on November 29 this year.  It's not too early to start thinking about how to plan for the most successful Black Friday shopping.  With so many awesome deals up for grabs and so much competition to get them, you need a plan to maximize your chances of being one of the lucky ones to get the deals you want.  

I always start by scouring the Black Friday ads to see what deals are being offered by my local stores.  That way I can plan which stores I want to visit and in what order.  There are many sites online that will post these ads early.  My favorite site to use is Slickdeals. 

Slickdeals is a great place to find the very best Black Friday deals.  It is my go to source to see awesome deals that are being offered by various stores.  I can learn what products are being offered and how big the sale is.  Slickdeals lists coupons, discounts and even coupon codes that can make my Black Friday savings even larger.

Once I see the Black Friday ads, I plan my budget.  I figure out exactly how much money I can afford to spend.  Then I make a list of the things that I most want to buy and where they are available for the best price.  The stores that offer the best deals have people lining up the night before and camping out all night, just so they can be one of the first people through the doors when they open.  This is because many stores offer insane door buster deals, but in limited quantities, so only the first few through the doors will get them.  So I like to research the door buster sales to see which store to camp out at.  

I think it is best to only go after the high dollar items that have the deepest discounts.  Huge savings on entertainment items like TVs, computers and gaming consoles can usually be found.  Other popular items are Clothing & Apparel, Health & Beauty items, Mommy & Baby items and travel items.  The smaller items will be offered at a good price, but chances are that you will be able to find those offered at good prices after Black Friday.  So I focus on the items that are higher priced and have the biggest discounts.

Another thing you should take note of is the store hours for Black Friday.  It's true that the best deals will sell out early, but many of the other items will remain available throughout the day.  These are the items that are available at a good sale price, but not necessarily at as deep a discount.  They are still a huge bargain though, and well worth your time to pick up, but do not require the early morning rush in order to snag them.  Large shopping malls that are full of big retailers are great destinations for Black Friday shopping.

Many stores offer great sales on Thanksgiving Day as well as throughout the weekend, so it is well worth taking the time to research those as well.  Another option is shopping online.  Retailers like Amazon offer limited time and limited availability sales in an on going basis during the holidays.  I find that toys and clothing are often offered at awesome sale prices on Cyber Monday and even after that.  Other retailers that offer great online sales are Walmart, Target and Lowe's.  

My biggest advice for Black Friday shopping is this:  DO YOUR RESEARCH!  Take the time to view the ads, make a list of the things you want to buy with the best deals.  BE PREPARED!  And hold off on the smaller purchases with the lower savings.  And don't forget to check Slickdeals for the earliest listing of Black Friday sales, coupons, discounts and coupon codes.  And good luck snagging the best bargains!