Black Friday 2008: Be Prepared

People line up for shopping the day after Thanksgiving at Target November 24, 2006 in Hobart, Indiana. Many shoppers ventured out for early morning deals as the Christmas shopping season gets underway on Black Friday. (Getty Images)more pics »There’s a chill in the air as the early morning dew begins to settle and the sun slowly starts to rise. Mobs of people gather, antsy, impatient and hungry for one thing… deals. Yes, when most of the nation is home, sleeping warm in their beds, a select few are brave enough to endure the madness that is Black Friday.

If you’re a wuss or a push over, Black Friday is probably not for you. The day after Thanksgiving is usually known in the U.S. as Black Friday, the busiest shopping day of the year. Stores slash prices on in demand items and consumers are quick to take advantage of these outrageous deals. Prices drop anywhere between 20 and 70 percent on electronics, clothes, home goods and more. It’s a great day to get Christmas shopping done, or to buy a few items for yourself at ridiculously low prices.

Still, this year's Black Friday sales may be disappointing. With the economy crashing and unemployment rates high, consumer-spending patterns are much lower for this time of year than usual.

The steep drop in spending is impacting retailers all over the nation, with many businesses like Circuit City and Mervyn’s filing for bankruptcy and closing their doors for good, and others permanently cutting prices for the holiday hoping to see some sort of increase in sales.

In fact, retailers are placing a lot of pressure on this year’s Black Friday since spending on this one day will predict spending patterns for the holiday season. According to ShopperTrak, last year's Black Friday weekend accounted for 10.1 perecent of total holiday sales. If Black Friday sales are dismal retailers have no choice but to continue to cut prices throughout the holidays to give consumers incentive to spend. Because of this and the fact that spending is already low for this time of year, consumers are drastically cutting prices for this year's Black Friday, hoping to entice more shoppers.

Shoppers at Target make their way through the crowd on Black Friday.
Still, if you’re one of those shoppers with enough money to splurge, we’ve got a few pointers for surviving Black Friday 2008. Although the day may seem like a dream come true, it's way more complicated than just showing up and taking advantage of endless deals.

What many people don’t realize is that stores open earlier than usual and if you don’t get there in time some of the best deals will be gone. Many stores open their doors as early as midnight, so make sure to double check the hours of the stores you want to go to before shopping.

Also, have a plan. Right about now stores are releasing their Black Friday ads, which tell you exactly what is on sale and for how much. Make sure you find what you want, where the best deals are and get to that store early.  For Black Friday ads check out some of these web sites:

• Black Friday Info
• Black Friday 2008
• Black Friday.Net

Obviously not everything you want is going to be at the same store, and you can’t be in multiple stores at the same time. I’d suggest picking out what you want by ahead of time, looking through ads to find the best prices, then ranking everything on your list by importance. Whatever is the most important thing on your list, go to that store first and buy anything else you can at that store. This way, at least you get the most important thing on your list, and you don’t have to worry about arriving too late to take advantage of deals.

Black Friday is like an insane shopping race, so get to stores early and buy what you want fast. Make sure to get to your first store at least an hour ahead of time because there will most likely be a long line. Also, it’s a good idea to be a little aggressive. There will be pushing and shoving to get into a store. If you’re a wuss or a push over, Black Friday is probably not for you.

The most important advice I can give you for Black Friday is to be prepared. If you’re going to a couple of stores, it’s probably a good idea to map out your route from store to store and set a time limit for yourself at each place. Just remember, to survive Black Friday:

1. Be prepared: research deals ahead of time and make a plan.
2. Get there early, there will be a line.
3. Be aggressive, but not too aggressive! Don’t be a push over, but don’t be a bully.
4. Shop fast and move on to the next store.
5. Stay caffeinated!

More Photos:

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Image Source Getty

• A Bonanzle Bonanza Block Party Sunday April 5th
  

  A Bonanzle Bonanza Block Party Sunday April 5th

  Update: The Bonanzle Block Party Was a Huge Success! Welcome To The Bonanzle Bonanza Block Party...

  Read Full Story »
• 12 Days Of Christmas Bonanzle Promotions
  12 Days Of Christmas Bonanzle Promotions

  12 Days Of Christmas Bonanzle Promotions Going on December 1st thru December 12th! Many Bonanzle Booths are Participating-See links to them all below! Moldavite Plus is participating in the...

  Read Full Story »
• 12 Days Of Christmas Bonanzle Promotions
  12 Days Of Christmas Bonanzle Promotions

  12 Days Of Christmas Bonanzle Promotions Going on December 1st thru December 12th! Many Bonanzle Booths are Participating-See links to them all below! Moldavite Plus is participating in the 12...

  Read Full Story »
• Bonanzle Shop Keepers Ready for Holiday Shoppers
  

  Bonanzle Shop Keepers Ready for Holiday Shoppers

  Happy Thanksgiving Day! “As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest...

  Read Full Story »
• Live Auctions On Bonanzle!
  

  Live Auctions On Bonanzle!

  Bonanzle is not necessarily known as being an auction site per se. However; a few ingenious...

  Read Full Story »