You’re a Guy and You Should Love Black Friday

Just like every other kid, Christmas was my favorite holiday. I loved everything about it: the presents, the food and even the family traditions. But, for as much as I loved Christmas, I really hated Thanksgiving. My hatred for Turkey Day didn?t really stem from me not being thankful; it was that I was so incredibly bored all day. Thanksgiving in my family was just like Christmas. I saw the same people and ate the same food, but, obviously there were no presents to open. However, one glimmer of hope always shone bright for me in Black Friday.

I?m a guy. I love sports, fast cars and electronics. But, I also love Black Friday. Maybe it started because I got to show my mom what I wanted for Christmas on Black Friday as a kid. Whatever, the reason, I?ve always enjoyed the year?s biggest shopping day. And, I?m going to tell you why you should, too.

Each year Black Friday gets bigger and bigger. Stores open earlier and prices seem to drop lower as retailers try to out-do each other. In 2013, Black Friday generated $14.264 billion in sales. That?s a lot of money. And, it?s a lot of savings. The average discount on items is 30% While that may not sound like much, but many of the sale items are products that don?t typically go on sale any other time of the year. This is especially true for electronics. But, what does this mean for you?

Cash in on Black Friday

While most people scour the Black Friday ads for potential Christmas presents, you should take a different approach. Because so many of the items on sale on Black Friday, especially in 2014, are tech related, there?s a chance for you to make some money.

If you?re willing to brave the crowds, long lines and, sometimes, the weather, you can score some really sweet deals on items that you can then turn around and sell for a nice profit. This is especially true if you have just a little bit of patience.

Best Buy, a store that every guy loves, is offering some of the best deals around. A Panasonic TV that normally sells for $549 will be just $199 for Black Friday. By taking advantage of sites like craigslist.org and ebay.com, it?s easy to see how you could make a few hundred bucks pretty quick. The secret is simple. Just wait a week or two until the sales are over and set your asking price somewhere between the regular price and what you actually paid for it.

Make a Plan

If you?re serious about turning Black Friday into a profit, the first step is to make a plan. Since just about every retailer offers sale items, it?s up to you to determine which stores you can get the most bang-for-your-buck from. The easiest way to accomplish this is to visit sites like bfads.com ahead of time. These sites will tell you pretty much every sale item out there from major retailers. All you have to do is decide which ones are worth going after.

Once you start looking through all the ads, it?s easy to get a pretty big list of items. Part of your plan should be narrowing your list down to a manageable amount. Remember, a lot of stores only stock a few of their really big ticket items. This means that you run the chance of waiting in line for hours and not actually scoring that TV. So, you need to decide if a store like Target has other items available you could make a nice profit on, just in case. After all, if you?re going to wait in line, you better walk away with something good.

Avoid Long Lines

Even though I love Black Friday, I can?t stand long lines. Especially long lines at 2:00 in the morning. If you?re like me, then your best bet is utilizing online deals. A lot of retailers will offer sales on their sites, but they don?t always offer their biggest items. You?ll need to plan ahead a little earlier if you go this route to get the best deals.

One option is to skip the store sites and go to sites like www.amazon.com instead. While Amazon hasn?t posted their Black Friday deals yet, they currently have daily items that are discounted so you can get a head start on the fun.

A new trend over the past few years has been Cyber Monday. Some retailers claim to hold back their biggest discounts until the Monday after Black Friday when they offer online-only sales. However, it?s up for debate which day actually gives consumers better discounts.

Make Black Friday an Investment

One thing to consider before going all in this Black Friday is how much money you may have to spend in order to make some profits. Typically, the more expensive items have the biggest discounts and, therefore, offer the biggest potential for profit. This means that you may need to spend quite a bit of money.

Before you whip out your credit cards, remember that it could take a few weeks and possibly even into the New Year to sell your items. If you?re confident you can pay your credit card balance off before the next billing cycle, then putting your purchases on plastic could be a smart option. Especially if your card offers rewards. However, if you?re not sure that you?ll be able to pay your balance off, then it might be better to use cash instead of paying interest.

While you might not love shopping, you need to embrace Black Friday as the perfect opportunity to earn some extra cash during the holiday season.