Tips to Find the Best Deals for Black Friday

The biggest shopping day of the year is rapidly approaching!  It’s time to find the best buys and deals on Black Friday for you serious shoppers out there!  As you may know, Black Friday is typically the biggest shopping day of the year when most retailers go into the black, or secure a profit on their financial statement for the year.

My prediction is we’ll see a pretty good Black Friday full of the usual great buys for early shoppers as well as plenty of incentives to lure shoppers into spending their Christmas money.

I’ve put together a list of some handy tips to insure shopping and smart spending success!  Take a look at them and let us know your tips in the comments.

• Review newspaper ads this week and decide which deals you’re going to pursue.  Make a list of your items and prioritize them from most important to least.
• Do some early research online and search for keywords such as “Target Black Friday Sales” and Best Buy Black Friday Sales.”
• Take your newspaper ad with you to insure you’re getting the deal you planned to get.
• Don’t feel like fighting the crowd…shop a lot of the same deals online the Monday after which is called “Cyber Monday.”
• Network with other online deal hunters in shopper forums and on Facebook.
• Follow some of your favorite retailers on Twitter and watch for special announcements and coupons. In fact, you can make a Twitter list of your favorite Black Friday retailers and stay up to date by the minute.
• Thank you Internet! Compare prices of products with the help of various price comparison sites like Bizrate, Nextag and Pricegrabber and find out where you can go to get the best buy!
• Don’t be fooled by Black Friday! Do some research and find out the regular price of the item to know how much you’ll save in advance.
• Planning to purchase a new computer or TV? Find online reviews for big ticket items before handing over the cash. It might be a great deal, but is it good quality?
• Visit BlackFriday.com where you can find more deals and tips.

While you’re ramping up for another money saving Black Friday don’t forget to follow some smart spending guidelines.

Here are a few tips to consider:

• Avoid impulse buying. Don’t let Black Friday excitement overwhelm you and talk you into a purchase you haven’t planned. Okay, there might be a deal too great to refuse, but in general, follow a plan just like you would for any shopping trip.
• Leave your credit card at home and spend cash. Seriously, don’t blow it on Black Friday and charge up a credit card bill you can’t repay. Nothing will steal your Christmas joy more than new credit card debt.
• Make sure you keep all of your purchase receipts to track your spending in your budgeting software or other tracking tool (as a good money manager should do).
• Finally, ask for return receipts and make sure you understand store policies for returns before making purchases.

Good luck and here’s to finding the best buys on Black Friday!

What are your Black Friday shopping tips?

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