Hey, friends! Today we welcome back Kyle, our semi-monthly contributor from Rather Be Shopping, who has for us today a valuable post on Black Friday shopping. Thanks, Kyle!
I have to admit that I use to shop on Black Friday regularly. Inevitably, I would wake up at 5 a.m. and head for the mall with a few items on my “want” list. Sometimes I was successful, but more than not, I came home empty-handed and really saddened by humanity. But I did learn a few things. In particular, I learned that some items are terrible buys on Black Friday. Here are five of the worst.
~ Name-Brand Televisions
While the Black Friday ads are pumped full of door busters on new TV’s, the truth of the matter is that most stores only have a handful to hand out. After those are gone, the deals aren’t that great especially on name brand models. If you do finds deals, they will almost always be on 3rd tier brands that you’ve never heard of.
If you are in the market for a new TV, your best bet is to wait until mid to late January as stores try to take advantage of the buzz around the Super Bowl by offering some big discounts and coupons.
~ Digital Cameras
New camera models come out in February, which always encourages retailers to clear out inventory in January and early February. The result? Big sales on last year’s model, up to 50% off if you do your research. So if you can be patient and wait, avoid looking for deals on cameras on Black Friday and get a better deal early next year.
~ Toys, Yes I Said Toys…
This one actually makes a lot of sense from a supply and demand perspective. Parents often go armed with a toy buying list on Black Friday looking to find a deal on the “hot toys of the season”. Well, guess what? Retailers are quite aware of this and tend to not offer big toy discounts on Black Friday and play on the fear of parents who are concerned they might not find the “hot toy” before retailers sell out. Hence they are more than willing to pay full price.
Your best bet? The price tag on toys notoriously goes down as we get closer to Christmas. If you can be patient, you’ll get the best price on toys during the week leading up to Christmas morning.
~ Christmas Decorations
While Christmas decorations might not be at the top of many Black Friday shopping lists, they can often creep up on you in the form of impulse purchases. Things like the crystal nativity scene you notice when standing in line or the cute ornaments you can’t live without. Keep in mind that they will almost always carry a full retail price tag. These impulse purchase can really blow your budget if you’re not careful. Obviously, your best bet is to buy for a HUGE discount right after the holiday as stores are clearing out inventory.
~ Exercise Equipment
Research at Rather-Be-Shopping.com over the past five Black Friday’s has shown that deals from stores like Sports Authority and Dick’s Sporting Goods are not much different than the rest of the year. The best time to buy a treadmill, weight set, or elliptical machine is in late January when many people have given up on their New Year’s resolution of losing weight or getting in better shape. Shop Craigslist or second-hand stores like Play-It-Again Sports for the best deals.
My absolute favorite way to find great Black Friday deals without leaving the comfort of your warm bed is to shop on eBay a couple days later. Many wanna-be entrepreneurs snatch up the door busters only to turn around and sell their loot on eBay for a small profit. If interested, I recently wrote in detail about this Black Friday hack.
About The Author: Kyle James operates Rather-Be-Shopping.com which has been helping families save money with coupons since 2001. He also writes a Blog which talks about creative ways to make your money go further every month.
Hey Kyle! I am seriously considering getting my daughter a Kindle on Black Friday. I heard they may be at Staples on their black Friday special!
I saw that too Holly, looks like the Kindle Fire will be only $79 on BF. pretty sweet deal.
It’s crazy how retailers try and trick us into thinking we can get the best deals on Black Friday! We’ll be doing any shopping, as usual, from home on the computer. 🙂 Good tip on Ebay, I had never thought of that.
Yeah, and now they want us to go shopping on Thanksgiving as well…crazy.
I’ve never been into the Black Friday thing. It always felt more like a scam to get you to buy things you didn’t need than something that was actually helpful.
True. The only time I got a deal was at Sports Authority where I bought our kids an air hockey table for Christmas, it was $350 off what they typically ask.
I always wondered if black friday was really the best time to everything? I guess I’m not willing to give up that day of being with my family to shop anyway so it doesn’t matter to me 🙂
Plus you gotta fight the crowds and lines, that is what I hated the most when I use to participate.
My wife has bought decorations for various holidays right after the holiday and the prices are dirt cheap. I’m not big on Black Friday deals. It seems the best deals advertised are only for those who get in ultra early. Thanks for the Kohl’s coupon code…I have a gift certificate from there that I was planning on using.
So smart to shop right after Christmas Andrew! As a frugal guy, it is the only time when my wife can talk me into going to the mall.
I definitely think black friday is overrated. People just go more so for the excitement of it. I definitely won’t be purchasing any tvs because every time we buy a tv on black friday, we end up taking it back for one reason or another.
I never go shopping on Black Friday. The deals just don’t seem that good to me? We tried one year and the line wrapped around Target twice, so the wait to check out was at LEAST a few hours.
This just craziness. At some point, you have to put some value on your time don’t you?
We’re planning on ignoring the entire event, otherwise we’ll clearly find some ‘need’ we don’t actually have. 😀
I totally get that Dojo.
This is my second Black Friday I have not worked. Through out the year you don’t see the craziness that used to be Black Friday as internet has helped ease the crowd. Before, it used to last the entire day but you get a big push and once the sale is done is done. You can get better deals at home (online) on some items. I purchased refurbished Galaxy tablet in December for about $200. I love the deals on some items (not popular items) but I don’t have to deal with the madness I just walk in and get it later on when it dies out.
As a former retailer manager on Black Friday is the day for me to sell merchandise that I have not been able to move for months. People buy anything/everything on Black Friday.
Thank you for the post!
Interesting perspective Brit. I can totally see it as an excellent way to move crap that won’t sell otherwise. Shoppers are just looking for the best deal, no matter what it is.
I try to avoid high-stress, high-spend situations like heading out early on Black Friday. Yes, I may “save” money by finding something on sale, but the stress just isn’t worth it for me (and it might pressure me to buy something I wouldn’t have). One of the many times I’ll prioritize less effort ahead of saving some money.
Such a great way to look at! If I do shop, I’ll stay home and shop online with ZERO stress.
Thanks for the information, Kyle. It’s good to know. I’ve never been a fan of Black Friday as I don’t like crowds. If anything, I only went to buy clothes, not big ticket items. I always hold off on getting decorations (and wrapping equipment) until after Christmas. Half off or more on bows and ribbons? I’m in.
How cheap is this…my wife and I keep old bows and ribbons and reuse them every Christmas. Does anyone else do this too?
Absolutely. I’ve recycled bows, papers, bags etc forever and haven’t bought those things in years. If you host a large crowd, you can make a killing – ha!
Great tips, Kyle. While I love a good bargain, I’m not a big fan of Black Friday either. I know for some families it’s a huge tradition and it’s a lot of fun for them. But I don’t dealing with the crowded stores and stressed out employees. It seems the closer it gets to the holidays, the more I turn to online shopping! Especially since many reduce or remove shipping costs – score!
Hard to beat free shipping Shannon! Although I always suggest to online shoppers to make sure that the retailer is not slipping in the shipping costs by raising the price of the item. Do a quick price comparison to make sure the price is the lowest around at which point free shipping a TOTAL bonus!
I rarely shop on Black Friday. The main reason is that you can score a better deal within the last week before Christmas and after.
That’s a surprising list at first glance, but each item makes sense after you explain it. I will miss out on Black Friday this year, but might try to recreate some of the magic abroad. 😉
Here in Dubai we have GITEXT, the price is not low as they said but they offer a lot of freebies if you buy certain gadgets.
Sometimes the worth of freebies is more than $100. Yes, most of the time, it is not good deals. They are providing that scheme in order to sell old stocks or outdated brands.
Thanks for the coupons, Kyle! I’ve never participated in Black Friday myself – the “deals” are never good enough to justify getting myself into that madness – but I definitely pick up some things online (and on Cyber Monday!)
I’m obviously a huge fan of Cyber Monday. Plus, many stores offer the same deals on their websites on Black Friday. If you are going to pick up a gift or 2, stay home in your pajamas with a cup of coffee and scour the web for a bargain.
I try to avoid shopping on Black Friday, especially at stores that force their employees to work Thanksgiving or nearly Thanksgiving. I don’t find it fair to the workers. Plus, like you mention, the deals often aren’t that great and I definitely wouldn’t want to deal with the crowds.
For me, I avoid Black Friday like the Black Plague.
I just can’t tolerate that crazy, competitive, grab-it-before-someone-else-does vibe.
Deaths of Black Friday shoppers are now an annual occurrence. When 2,000 people are rushing into a Wal-Mart through two doors, something bad is bound to happen. And it usually does.
I’ll participate this year, but after working seasonally at Target one year, I swore it off. I hated how I spent all Thanksgiving planning on being assaulted at work the next day.
I actually love Black Friday shopping. I get incredibly competitive so it’s one of the probably four times a year I actually shop. I do a lot of Christmas shopping for DVDs and clothes. I’m not extreme enough to camp out in tents or wait in insane lines, but I do like going with friends or family for some early morning discounts.
Last year I managed to stay away from the Black Friday sales altogether and I was pretty calm about checking and comparing prices. Most products, like toys as you said, TVs and laptops, had similar deals in time for Christmas, maybe even better.
This year, however, since we’re dealing with some renovations in our house, I’ll keep a close eye on the deals for the stuff that we need. Hopefully the renovations will be ready in time :))
I only go down to the big mall to soak in the crowds at Black Friday. I like the event of it and official feel of Christmas, but don’t want the long lines to buy stuff.
Great tips, Kyle! I will have to avoid Dick’s and Sport’s Authority this Black Friday. I always wish I had more time to research deals to find out if I’m really getting a good deal or just a so-so deal (or even a worse deal than I would if I waited). Thanks for sharing your expertise on this topic. Definitely saves everyone time and money.
We always buy our Christmas decorations the year before during the clearance sales. I refuses to pay full price for wrapping paper we are going to throw away. Just rubs me the wrong way.
I don’t go shopping on any big shopping day, mainly because I never need anything bad enough to have to brave the stores!