How to get the best discounts on Black Friday
Tricks so as not to fall into the temptation to buy more in these early sales
This day marks the beginning of the Christmas season in the United States, which begins with a preview of the January sales. It takes place the day after Thanksgiving (the fourth Thursday in October), which means that Black Friday will be on November 27, although it is increasingly common that there are offering the previous days.
Black Friday is among the American customs that have crossed the Atlantic in recent years, and in Europe, we have embraced it with passion.
Seven years ago, there was hardly any reference to this sale day. Still, already last year, there was a continuous bombardment of advertising encouraging people to consume at the end of November. According to Google the number of searches for the terms ‘Black Friday’ or ‘Cyber Monday,’ have risen exponentially from 2004 until 2019.
Indeed, suppose for some reason the Black Friday discounts cannot be taken advantage of. In that case, we can always resort to ‘Cyber Monday,’ another American marketing invention to encourage consumption on a specific date. In this case, the first Monday after Black Friday is exclusively online: November 30.
This year, following the growing trend of e-commerce since the pandemic began, the forecast is that Black Friday purchases will occur online.
An increase in online purchases expected for this year
According to the excellent price, 73% of consumers say the internet will be the way to purchase on November 27. The most popular products will be clothing (39% of searches), sports shoes (28%), mobile phones (27%), laptops (22%), and smart TVs (16%).
Google’s data indicates a lower sales volume: 40% of the population declares that they will buy or maybe buy on Black Friday and Cyber Monday. This percentage has increased in all age groups (especially those aged 18 to 24 and 45 to 64). Women intend to spend € 160 and men € 200.
This year, consumers intend to avoid store crowds by making purchases in advance – as indicated by Think with google, the search engine tool focused on online marketing. More than half of the users, 51%, will carry out a previous search in search engines and 32% will do so on social networks, while 27% will physically go to a store, 16% will turn to YouTube, 11% will watch magazines, and 6% will blog. According to Google, the most sought-after products will be clothing and accessories (€ 32), electronics (26%), culture (24%), furniture (10%), and beauty (8%).
How to get the best deals
These sales have a reasonably limited duration, leading to hasty decisions, so it is better to face them with a cool head and analyze what you want to buy. If the products that most interest you are already clear, you have to investigate the prices before Black Friday approaches to avoid the stores inflating the price shortly before and then making you believe that it is a reduction than the usual price. Alternatively, the price is indicated concerning the one that the product had when it came out, ignoring the subsequent sales that have occurred and are usually significant in technology.
It should also be remembered that sales start at midnight on Black Friday, so the most coveted items will be sold out in the first hours, as in a regular sale. However, from a few days before that date, you can already find offers.
In the case of online stores, it is advisable to update our data beforehand since every second counts at the time of purchase. We must review the credit card information with special care (experts recommend using only one virtual type to avoid scares in the face of possible security breaches). Furthermore, it is the best time to use if we have access to a computer with an operating system other than Windows (Mac, Linux).
Some stores use browser information to offer different prices depending on the buyer’s location. To avoid this, we can open a window to navigate in incognito or private mode and deactivate location tracking. In Chrome, you have to go to the three points in the upper right of the top bar and enter Settings> Privacy and Security> Website settings> Location, and select ‘Ask before accessing.’ When the browser asks on each website, the permission must be denied. Edge is accessed through the three points in the upper right, entering Settings> Site permissions> Location and selecting ‘Ask first
OCU Recommendations
The Organization of Consumers and Users (OCU) has developed a series of rules to avoid problems with pre-Christmas purchases:
- Comparing is saving: You have to consider different options since prices can vary from one store to another. Maybe we will find a product that is more convenient than initially planned.
- Check prices: Next to the sale price should be the original price, the percentage of the discount, or both.
- Remember that the guarantees are the same if what has been purchased has a factory defect. Still, stores are not required to return anything if the buyer regrets or bought the wrong product.
- The quality of the product should be the same as with the full price. Defective products cannot be sold at a discount.
- Stores can establish special conditions during sales, such as not accepting card payments or changing the return policy, but they must advertise this clearly and visibly for all customers.
- Keep the ticket for any claim.
- The store must have a claim sheet and provide it to the customer who requests it. There are three copies: one for the establishment, one for the customer, and another to be presented at the Consumer Office.
- There are 14 days to return the product without giving explanations in online purchases, and the seller must return to the customer all that she has paid. For online payments, it is preferable to use a credit card or Paypal and avoid bank transfers, especially if the seller does not have the buyer’s full confidence.
- Make a list of the products we want to buy: Think carefully about what is needed and not buy impulsively.
References
| Research Study Title | Link of Study |
|---|---|
| The Economic Effects of Black Friday: Consuming While Investing | https://www.researchgate.net/publication/330414401_The_Economic_Effects_of_Black_Friday_Consuming_While_Investing |
| Black Friday: The Day of Mayhem and Bedlam? | https://www.researchgate.net/publication/327911395_Black_Friday_The_Day_of_Mayhem_and_Bedlam |
| Are Consumers Better Off During a Sale? The Effect of Regular Prices on Sales | https://www.jstor.org/stable/30040623 |
| The Psychology of Black Friday: An Exploratory Study | https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/2158244019892712 |
| The effects of price discounts and bundling on consumer perceptions of value | https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0167811613002387 |
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