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Black Friday will soon be here. Do you like to shop on Black Friday? If you haven't done it before, there are some plans you should make to make this shopping day productive and cost-effective. The trick is to be organized in your strategy. Today, I am sharing my favorite Black Friday Tips to help stay on budget and save time on the Black Friday. Follow along and share with others. Happy Shopping!
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Sign up for your favorite store emails.
Sign up for your favorite stores' emails. Make up a junk mail email address that you can check out once a week to see what deals are going on.
Visit our favorite stores online.
Review all websites online for your favorite stores. They most likely have them posted already. Print out coupons as needed.
Make a Holiday Gift Given List
Make a list of people who you want to shop for. Here is a checklist (Affiliate Link) you can use. Add the item and price of the item that you want to pay to your list. Overestimate how much the gift will cost if you don't research how much it will be. Keeping a budget will help you not spend too much on gifts.
Below are our gift guide posts to help you decide on gifts! Thank you for supporting my small business.
Review online coupons
Review online coupon sites to see if there are extra deals at other online sites. There are lots of places to check, like Coupons.com, Rakuten, Swagbucks, Groupon, Amazon Coupons, and RetailMeNot.
Map Your Black Friday Plans
Make a list of where to go and map it out on the paper. Here is a Where to Go checklist (Affiliate Link) to use. Write down your place and what you want to buy there.
Carry Cash to Restruct Over Spending
Have all the cash you need for the purchase. Whether you are using cash or credit card, be really aware of how much you will be spending for each item.
Read the Fine Print on Deals
Read the fine print on all promotional deals before going out. The items could not be the items you want, so taking the time at home and reading the fine print will save you time and confusion in the store.
Leave Early
Another Black Friday tip is to leave early in the morning instead of doing Thanksgiving evening. I thought that some deals would run out, so I went on Thanksgiving one year. Then, I went back the next day, and sure enough, the items were still there. The stores don't put all their stock out, so don't worry about going early. If it is a good store, they will have enough supplies for the entire weekend.
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Black Friday Tips and Spending Traps
There are several tricks that retailers do that may make you spend and buy more. Here are some tricks so you are aware of them when you shop.
Sense of Urgency
If it seems like they are pressuring you because time is running out, that is a red flag they want you to spend more. Ask yourself, do I need it right now? Is it important to me? Do I need to buy it right now, or can I wait a few weeks? Take a second and determine your real reason for taking action, not just the reason the retailers or online stores say it is the reason.
Things that are good to buy on Black Friday could be laptops and other tech items, TVs and other electronics, fall clothing, beauty care items, and small appliances (Affiliate Link). Keep in mind that some electronics and small appliances (Affiliate Link) could have been just for Black Friday and are simplified from the original product to save money when manufacturing them. Read the fine print on what the product includes and compare them with other offers of the same product.
If it is too good to be true, it often is.
Some retailers will inflate the price on Black Friday to look like it is a better deal than it actually is. I've seen it happen in the past. Make sure you read the fine print and details of the item.
Beware of Impulse buying.
Having a list will help you not fall for the impulse buy near the counter. You can instead shop with cash to make sure you don't overspend. If you need more money, you can stop by and withdraw some money.
Be leary of buy now and pay later.
Keep yourself aware of what you are doing and how much you are required to pay for the buy now, pay later deals.
Bonus deals that just don't make sense
Just because you need to spend $60.00 to get $10.00 off doesn't mean you have to do it. Be aware of what you need and how much it costs. If you only need to spend $25.00 and can't find anything else in the store, you can go to a different store to see if you can get the one item at a lower price. Try not to buy just because you want to get the deal.
I hope this helps you save time and money on Black Friday. Keep in mind a little planning will help you get what you want for less money every time. Enjoy yourself and take your time. You will be able to get everything done.
Please note these are affiliate links through Amazon, and at no additional cost to you, I will earn affiliate fees if you decide to make a purchase.
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