It’s unfortunate that Black Friday gets a pretty bad rep most of the time. Yes, back in the day people were trampled just to get some Tickle Me, Elmo for $10 less than normal, which is terrible. But that is really not the norm for most Black Friday outings. Don’t let your fears of Black Friday ruin your chance of scoring some awesome stuff for half the price! And let’s be real, no matter how cool of a job you have as a 20-something, none of us can actually afford anything at full price…so take advantage of this opportunity!
Do’s
1. Recruit family members or friends to join you in your quest for savings.
It is a tradition now for my sister, Mom, and I to participate in Black Friday. It is actually something we look forward to doing every year, and we get lots of quality time together while we are waiting in lines! Plus, it’s always fun when you get a serious case of the giggles at about 4am.
2. Be prepared.
You can’t just decide to partake in the Black Friday madness at the last minute. You need to go out knowing what stores have the things you want at and what time they open up. During Thanksgiving day, you need to look through the Black Friday ads to figure out your game plan. This ensures that you hit the right places at the right times in order to score that cheap vacuum that your apartment is so desperately in need of.
3. Work as a team.
Once you are at the store and in the midst of the crazy, you need to split up your group. Each person should be sent on a mission to find a specific item from your shopping list. You need to utilize your numbers in order to get those popular goods, especially if you are trying to get some cheap electronics or appliances.
4. Dress warm.
It is winter, so I’m hoping that you would be doing this anyways. I mean, I am from California and it is always freezing while we stand in line on Black Friday, so I can’t imagine how bad it is in places with real weather. It’s probably best to dress in layers because while you may be shaking outside in line, you will most likely then be sweating inside.
Don’ts
1. Sleep.
Most of the stores now technically open on Thanksgiving or at midnight. So it really is not the smartest move to try to sleep and then go out. You don’t want to be groggy while pushing your way through Best Buy to find those $3 DVDs!
2. Leave the house hungry.
Since Black Friday begins right after Thanksgiving, I would assume that you will be well fed. But on the off chance you weren’t feeling the turkey all that much, make sure that you won’t get hungry while waiting in line. You will need your strength and patience!
4. Get a late start.
If you’re planning on getting something that’s listed at a ridiculously low price, then don’t think that you can head to a store 2 hours after it opens. Anything big like a TV or computer, they usually pass out a certain number of tickets to the people in line before the store even opens now. This cuts down on the whole trampling people in order to get there first thing.
3. Go alone.
I can’t even imagine what braving Black Friday would be like without my Mom and sister to gossip and complain with while in line. This is not something I would recommend doing alone because then you will probably just end up hating everyone around you. And that’s just not very conducive to the whole concept of Thanksgiving…
