Friday, November 14, 2008

Black Friday Feature: Top 10 Tips You Need To Know Before Shopping

10. Bring Refreshments

Hey, believe it or not, shopping can be pretty tiring. I suggest you bring a few bottles of water, a few granola bars and some soda to keep from waiting in the long line-ups at snack places.

9. Take it Off

Black Friday is one day you can't afford to miss. In fact, some employers are even deciding to allow workers to have this day off with pay. And even if this isn't the case, the money you will save will still compensate for any lost salary.

8. Find a Shopping Location that Suits Most of Your Needs

You don't want to be wandering from one mall to another, wasting gas, time and energy. Just look for somewhere that has everything on your wishlist, from clothing to electronics to furniture to sports equipment.

7. Try to Purchase Bigger, More Important Items for Greater Savings

Black Friday is not the day to be buying cartons of milk or bags of chips; you should be thinking to make major purchases to really take advantage of the low prices. For instance, that TV you've been wanting might be something you'll want to shop for.

6. Plan a Route of Stores You Want to Visit to Save Time

This is a biggie. It would be dumb and frustrating, and not to mention exhausting to be scurrying in circles through an enormous shopping center, filled with people. Take a bit of time beforehand to go to your Black Friday destination's website and print a map to lay out your trek.

5. Search Through "Official Black Friday" Websites to Find the Best Deals

Although pretty much all stores will have humongous mark-downs, you should see that you get the best prices on the best items. Some websites can be found with a simple search of "black friday" on Google can lead to good pages.

4. Make a Shopping List

This can determine how much you can buy and can be based on priority, considering your budget. As well, a shopping list can help you with your route.

3. Grab a Few Coupons

I think this is pretty self-explanatory; coupons are money in the bank and no experienced shopper can go without them. You might not think these are important on such a day but you might regret not printing a few off.

2. Don't Try To Buy Everything

This is a mistake many shoppers are bound to make and it's quite inevitable that you will spend more than what you planned but keep in mind that even with the incredible sale prices, you don't have all the money in the world. You probably shouldn't purchase the products that are 5-10% off because there are many that are 70-80% off.

1. Don't Waste Your Time

Looking at products that you have no intention of buying is absolutely off limits on such a hunt for things. Black Friday is no time to dawdling, glancing over everything that "interests" you because trust me, there will be a lot of cool stuff. Also, if you want ultimate efficiency, you might want to split up if you are a large group, organizing a meeting place. After this, you can enter stores that cater to what you want.

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