Black Friday Deals Aren't Real!

Black Friday Deals…Myth or Reality?

Well, both actually. There’s an old saying that comes to mind when wondering if Black Friday Sales are really good deals or just mumbo-jumbo fancy marketing to get you in the store. “If it’s too good to be true…then it probably isn’t”. Most people know the difference between a really good deal and a deal of a lifetime. A deal of a lifetime only comes once in a lifetime, not every year the day after Thanksgiving.

I’m not saying the super-duper discounts are fake prices where when you enter the store you’ll see a different price. What I’m saying is your chance of getting that product (it being available when you arrive at the store) is slim to none. Even if you are one of those people who will get up at 2am and stand in a long line for hours with hopes of being one of those people who get the product at the super low discount, it’s just not worth it. It’s very ironic that the stores seem to have small limited quantities of those products that are very low priced, but they have unlimited quantities of the products that aren’t offered at such discounts.

Now that Black Friday is over, there are still some good deals out there. The Black Friday gimmick is a great way to spark the holiday shopping momentum, but stores know they have to keep the deals coming in order to keep the momentum going for 4 weeks until Christmas day! It’s a lot easier to find deals in 2010 than it has been in past years. The internet is so easily accessible and a lot of people have smart phones now. You can find a website or a free app that will tell you where the good deals are, for the products you want. Most popular items: electronics, clothing, cologne and household products. Search and find online. And also, keep in mind: there are websites that sell most of the products you can buy in the store. Since these websites don’t have to pay for a “store-front” facilities, they can offer much better deals.

If you know of any stores or websites with great deals, please post comments below.

Thanks and Great Shopping!

Impulse Buying

Ever heard the term? Maybe. Have you ever done it before? Probably. Here’s an example scenario: you’ve just finished grocery shopping. You have all the food and home supplies you need and you get in line at the cash register. There are a few people in front of you and you have to wait. You look to your right and you see your favorite magazine, so you pick it up. Then you move closer as one person has finished and the next shopper proceeds to ring up their stuff. What do you see next, and ice cold pop (or soda if you’re in the south). Hmm looks good. So you get one. You move a little closer to the front of the line, and what do you see? Your favorite candy bar or snack, and you grab a few for the road.

The items in check-out line are what grocers call, “Impulse products”. They are low-cost, high margin products that they can sell at a relatively cheap price. They’re compact and easy to grab. Which means, they’re great for tempting people to grab them “last-minute” and “on-the-go”? Just think about it, when’s the last time you saw a single Twix candy bar on sale in the grocery aisles. Most times you won’t…Why? Because, it’s during that time, most shoppers are taking their time. You’re more likely to see a bulk pack of Twix in the grocery aisle and a single Twix in the check-out line.

The best is when they sell candy “2 for $1”, you really feel like you’re getting a deal then. But the catch is, you really don’t need it. When’s the last time you drove on the way to grocery with “candy bar” on your grocery list? You probably never have. You go in, with the intentions of buying groceries and get suckered into buying snacks while waiting in the check-out line because they’re cheap, fast and easy.

FIGHT THE URGE AND DON’T SUCCUMB TO IMPULSE PRODUCTS!