Black Friday — either you love it, or you hate it. As retailers continue to offer a very limited quantity of doorbuster deals each year, many shoppers are wising up and looking for other ways to save. Here are a few unique ways to save money on Black Friday without ever having to leave the comfort of your pajamas.
If you're a Black Friday veteran, you know about the "doorbuster" deals that are available at stores like Best Buy, Target, and Kohl's. But the problem is, unless you're willing to camp out for hours (even days), you simply aren't going to get your hands on these very limited-supply deals.
Well… until now! A great way to find close to doorbuster prices is to check out eBay the weekend after Black Friday. Many shoppers who are willing to stand in line are wannabe entrepreneurs looking to turn a quick profit. They get into the store first, snatch up as many of the doorbusters as they can find, and go home and put them on eBay.
Because eBay gets inundated with Black Friday products, supply and demand takes over and you stand a great chance of scoring a deal close to the doorbuster price. I did this last year with an external hard drive that was regularly $79.99. It had a $39.99 Black Friday price, and I snatched it up on eBay for only $49. Still a great deal, and I didn't have to fight the crowds.
When looking through the Black Friday ads this year, note that almost all of the sale prices will also be available on the retailer's website. You can find most of them starting at 12:01 a.m. on Black Friday morning, and some stores like Walmart and Target will have deals available online all day on Thanksgiving as well. By staying home and shopping online, you can also take advantage of quick price comparison websites and shop with coupon codes.
If you can't find a coupon code to your favorite online retailer, simply start a live chat session on their website and politely ask the operator if they can help you out. In many cases, they're given coupon codes to hand out on Black Friday, like free shipping or 15% off your order..
Over the years, Black Friday has morphed from a one-day event to a week-long savings fest. But what many shoppers don't realize is that many of these early deals have proven to provide similar savings to what you'll find on Black Friday.
For example, Amazon is terming their current sale "Countdown to Black Friday," while Home Depot has coined their sale "Black Friday Prices Starts Now." Home Depot is selling major appliances for up to 40% off the retail price until Thanksgiving, a discount that will be matched on Black Friday. So why not shop early, avoid the crowd, and get the same deal? This also makes sense at Costco, Kmart, Macy's, Sears, and other big-box stores.
The last two years we saw Amazon lowering prices throughout the day on Black Friday in response to what the competition was offering. Look for more of the same this year from the online retail giant.
The two retailers they were carefully watching were Best Buy and Walmart. So as a consumer, if you're considering a significant purchase from Best Buy or Walmart, know that Amazon may very well have a lower price by the evening of Black Friday. It may be worth your while to wait and try to nab the lowest price possible. You may even score free shipping.
If you're planning on skipping the Black Friday chaos to shop online, be sure you do it with a coupon in-hand. Sign up for coupon alerts at a website like RetailMeNot or SlickDeals, then simply pick the online retailers you know you'll be searching. They'll email you a coupon or deal when they add one to their website, which guarantees you'll maximize your savings.
If the idea of doing any shopping over Thanksgiving weekend makes you cringe, don't worry too much about missing any possible money-saving opportunities. In actuality, according to coupon research at Rather-Be-Shopping.com, many items are cheaper in December than they are on Black Friday.
Are you planning on shopping on Black Friday? What's your best tip to save money?
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