Black Friday | holiday shopping
Mobee’s Black Friday Shopping Lifeline
Black Friday is one of the biggest shopping days of the year. Given some of the incredible deals that are available, it’s not surprise to us. With the biggest shopping day of the year also comes massive crowds, lines, and rushes to get the best deals, products, and more. How can you make the most of your Black Friday shopping without getting lost in the crowd or missing out on the best deals?
Some find the large crowds and early morning wake-up can be a deterrent, but the money-saving deals are well worth it if you find products you’re excited about. You don’t want to overspend around the holidays, so take advantage of these Black Friday tips and tricks that we’ve curated for you!
1. Start your shopping on Thanksgiving
As avid shoppers know, Black Friday deals don’t always wait until Black Friday. Many stores will open around 6 PM on Thanksgiving with their deals ready to go. Jumping on those discounts the night before will help you get ahead of the crowd, get the same amazing deals, and it’ll allow you a little extra sleep the next morning.
It can be tricky to slip away from Thanksgiving dinner for a quick shopping trip, but remember stores will be open much later, if not all night. It might be worth a stop to your favorite store after the festivities to get a jump on your holiday shopping and of course, the discounts! Your family might even want to join you – shopping after a holiday meal could turn into your next big family tradition, crazier things have happened, right?
2. Make a Shopping List
The biggest issue with Black Friday is overspending. With so many deals available, it can be easy to get lost in a spending-spree. To avoid overspending we recommend making a list of everything you want or need to get and order them based on importance. You don’t need to stick solely to this list, but trying to keep your purchases to the needed items only will help cut down on overspending.
adding a budget to your shopping list will also help you keep track of how much you’re spending on the items you buy.
3. Abandoned Cart Discount (online only)
A little trick to try while shopping online during the Black Friday festivities is the “abandoned cart discount.” Sometimes, when you put a few items in your cart, then leave the website for a little while, you’ll get an email with a discount code. Typically this will allow you an additional 15-20% off your purchase.
It’s important to keep in mind that this is not available at every online store and you may not get one for every online retailer you try it with. But, it’s always worth a try for a little extra money off your purchase? It is the season of discounts after-all!
4. Check Social Media
A fairly new shopping hack is checking social media for special discount codes or sales at stores online or in-store. Between social media influencers and special sales shared directly by brands you never know what kinds of discounts you could stumble upon. Between Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Snapchat, and Twitter there are many resources that could offer you eve more sales than you’d initially imagined.
Bonus: Look into social media influencers who’s “niche” is related to products or items you may be interested in. For example, many YouTube vloggers offer discount codes for clothing or make-up brands on their Instagram pages. You can check tagged photos of brands you love, hashtags, or do some research on different influencers to get prepared to shop. Doing a little research before Black Friday will only help you make the most of your shopping experience.
5. Check out the Stores in Advance
A few days before the sales begin, it’s always helpful to do a quick walk-through of the store(s) you’re planning on visiting. This will help you get a feel for the current layout, find the products you’re most interested in, and you can even map out the best path towards those items.
Look for path’s that are out of the way of the main aisles as that’s where the largest number of people will be come Black Friday. Doing a pre-sale recon mission will help you – hey, there might be a Mobee Mission to help you get some more gift cards before you start your shopping, too!
6. Bring Coupons
The sales you see in-store are not always the only available sales. Take a look online or at ads in the newspaper (I know, who reads newspapers anymore?) but seriously it works! You never know which retailers have a few extra deals for those willing to look into it.
Cutting out or printing the deals you find will give you a little extra incentive to catch the other in-store deals. Who doesn’t love extra sales?
7. Price-check
The most important piece of advice we can give you is: just because something says it’s on sale, doesn’t mean that’s the best price for it. There are a ton of resources you can use to price check products you’re considering buying on Black Friday. The easiest is a quick Google search. You can look at the results to determine if you’re getting the best price. Another option you have is using Amazon to check prices of products you’re interested in.
In addition to that, there are several apps and online resources that will do a quick price check for you. You don’t have to go into your shopping blind – the internet is a beautiful thing and the information it can give you will help you make the best purchase decision for you.
8. Wake up early, nap later
If you’re a fan of the early morning shopping experience that only comes with Black Friday shopping, then we’d recommend waking up as early as possible, shopping to your hearts content, and upon getting home taking a much deserved nap. Sleep is extremely important, but to save the most money, sometimes you have to wait for that afternoon nap.
Make sure you’ve gotten enough sleep to drive and make smart spending decision, though! Going to sleep on the earlier side is a great idea to make this plan happen. Luckily, with all that turkey from Thanksgiving, it shouldn’t be too hard to fall right asleep!
9. Wait for Cyber Monday
For some people, the crowds are too much to manage. If that’s the case for you, try waiting it out until Cyber Monday. Typically, you’ll see the same if not better deals available online. More often than not, there will also be free shipping available for your purchase. If you don’t have to pay for shipping, it’s almost like being at the store without the crowds.
Be careful though, items can sell out quickly. It much harder to track when items are no longer available online. We’d recommend jumping on the products you’re most interested or need the most to be sure you get everything on your wish list.
10. Have fun!
The most important tip we have for you is to have fun. Whether you’re an early riser, an online shopper, or like to avoid Black Friday all together, you should remember to enjoy Black Friday. If you’re not a big shopper, just think of this day as fun little vacation day to spend with your friends and family.
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