Black Friday Shopping Guide: How To Find the Best Deals and Keep Your Credit Safe

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Gone are the days of Black Friday being just one day of the week: it’s now a whole shopping season. Savvy consumers are set to capitalize on pre-holiday gift deals available now through December, with experts predicting spending will increase 20 percent from last year to hit $17 billion.

However, techniques for getting the best deals are changing. The pandemic has remade Black Friday as we know it.

In 2020, in-store, elbow-to-elbow shopping became unsafe, pushing more deals online. Plus, with retailers facing supply chain issues and shipping delays, it made sense to expand the shopping period, instead of Black Friday being the mad-rush it has been in previous years. 

This is good news for consumers who use that extra time to compare prices, take advantage of loyalty programs and certain credit lines, and monitor their receipts closely. 

Here are our top shopping tips to help you get the most out of this unique Black Friday season.

When Does Black Friday Shopping Start?

While Nov. 26 is Black Friday proper, this year we saw the first Black Friday sales begin in mid-October with some retailers offering up deals much earlier than others. 

For example, Best Buy, Amazon and Walmart are all hosting early Black Friday deals on tech, home and fashion. 

Best Buy is set to start its sale Nov. 19 offering discounted televisions, computers, gadgets and small kitchen appliances, and Amazon shoppers can already snag deals on certain products, including the new Apple AirPods, during its “Early Black Friday” sale. 

Cyber Monday will take place on Nov, 29 this year, and it’s worth noting that most retailers will continue the 2020 move of being closed on Thanksgiving. 

Buy Now, or Wait for a Better Deal?

This year, experts are recommending consumers start shopping for holiday gifts ahead of Thanksgiving and Black Friday.  

While you may consider waiting for a better deal to come up, analysts say shopping early this year is a good strategy because deals are kicking off earlier and because hot products may sell out quickly, or fail to arrive at your doorstep on time because of the supply chain issues.

There are significant shortages in some product categories, so consumers should jump on deals for items like laptop computers, toys and newer gaming consoles.

Analysts also say going in-store to find better deals probably isn’t worth the time. It’s likely retailers will offer the same deals online, with more delivery options this year like free delivery and curbside pickup.

Money-Saving Black Friday Shopping Tips

To know for sure whether or not the item you’re seeing on sale is a good deal, you need to know the price history of the product. Thankfully the spread-out nature of Black Friday this year gives us more time to check.

You may wish to use a phone app that gives you Black Friday shopping tips. Apps like Rakuten (iTunes, Android) not only tell you about pricing and coupons — they also offer you cash back on purchases from thousands of merchants. Price Cruncher (Android only) compares prices, shows you price history, finds ways you can save by buying in bulk, and much more. You can also try Google Shopping, PriceGrabber, and Shopzilla. 

When you’re in a store, smartphone apps such as BuyVia, Shopkick, ShopSavvy, and Shopular let you scan barcodes or QR codes to compare prices, get discounts, and score coupons. And many of the retailers you shop from also make their own apps that offer coupons and product information. 

To get the same shopping edge on your laptop or desktop, add a price-watching extension to your web browser. CamelCamelCamel keeps track of deals on Amazon, and Honey watches prices on over 30,000 websites. Meanwhile, Blackfriday.com will scan all the ads as they are published, and you can choose to receive an email when a special deal that interests you comes along. 

When you’re done crossing everything off your holiday list, delete the apps you don’t use to protect your privacy and security.

Credit, Price Drops and Warranties

With the shift to online buying, more of us will be using credit cards to pay for purchases.

One benefit is that many cards will double the manufacturer’s warranty. 

But be wary of the interest-free promotions offered by store credit cards, Consumer Reports warns. If you don’t pay them off before the promotional period ends, you could get stuck paying interest on the full amount of the purchase.

Check all store policies in advance to find out their credit card, price-match and return policies. 

Analysts expect even more retailers to price-match specific deals this year. For example, Target has already announced that shoppers buying anything from Oct. 10 through Dec. 24 will be able to request a price adjustment if the price drops later in the season. 

Safety Tips for Black Friday Shopping

With increased online shopping comes a greater risk of online identity theft. Fortunately there’s a lot you can do to protect your online transactions.

• Stick to shopping from businesses you know. If you want to give a new seller a try, check the customer reviews to see what other shoppers’ experiences have been like or look up its Better Business Bureau evaluation.
• Before you buy online, check the website’s URL. If it doesn’t match the name of the company, it might be a scam.
• Make your purchase through a third-party payment system, like PayPal, that qualifies the purchase for buyer protection.
• Before you open a promotional email, check the sender’s address. Make sure it matches the company it’s supposed to be coming from. If you’re at all uncertain, don’t click on any links in the email and don’t download any attachments.
• Watch out for scams on social media. Like email scams, messages you get on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and the like may lead you to bogus websites.

Meanwhile, only apps and retailers that you provide express written consent are allowed to send text messages to your cell phone. As with emails, some of the spam texts you receive could be scams disguised as coupons. Don’t tap any links in a text message if you’re not certain it’s safe.

And even legitimate promotional text messages have to comply with federal telemarketing laws. 

If you receive unsolicited advertisements from any retailers who send such marketing texts en masse, such businesses could be held responsible for violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). 

Saving and Checking Receipts and Credit Report

Once the shopping’s done, hang on to your receipts — they might be worth money someday. 

Even if you don’t think you’ll need to return the purchase, you may need those receipts months or years from now to make a claim in a class action settlement. 

Many settlement administrators require copies of a receipt as proof of purchase. And while some settlements don’t require proof of purchase, they often pay out more to claimants who can provide a copy of their receipt.

Moreover, it’s a good idea to look over every receipt to make sure the retailer followed the Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act (FACTA) by printing no more than the last four digits of your card number on the receipt. 

Retailers who print a different combination of card digits and/or the expiration date of the card can be held accountable for FACTA violations through class action lawsuits.

After any sort of online spending spree, you should also be checking your credit report frequently for signs of fraud. 

For example, a number of Best Buy customers are currently seeking compensation after a 2017 cyberattack on the company in which they allege their private financial information was obtained by hackers. 

Customers who had their financial information exposed say they either lost money, needed to replace financial cards, felt the need to pay for credit monitoring services, or spent time dealing with the results of the attack. Best Buy is in negotiations with customers on a settlement deal.

So this Black Friday and holiday shopping season, be sure to hang on to those receipts, plan ahead, and shop early to cash in on extended deals and so you don’t run into supply chain issues.

Read About More Class Action Lawsuits & Class Action Settlements:

• Can Someone Get Your Credit Card Number from a Receipt?
• What Is the Purpose of FACTA Receipt Privacy Laws?
• What Are Credit Card Receipt Privacy Laws?
• McCormick Perfect Pinch, Gourmet Seasoning $3M Class Action Settlement