Pros say shoppers can make the most of Black Friday with research

Nov. 22--Black Friday remains the year's No. 1 busiest shopping day in the retail tracking firm ShopperTrak's ranking, and experts say consumers can make the most of it with a little research.

"Yes, there are plenty of good deals that can be found on Black Friday," said Jill Gonzalez, an analyst with WalletHub, a personal finance website. "More and more retailers are offering steep price cuts as well as other promotions to attract customers and stay ahead of the competition."

Gonzalez said shoppers can find the best prices by comparing merchandise at different retailers.

Video games and consoles, hot toys, smart-home products and shoes are some of the best buys of the day, according to Sarah Hollenbeck, a shopping and retail expert at Blackfriday.com.

She also said good deals are available on TVs and appliances.

At WalletHub, "we found that the most discounted items for Black Friday are jewelry, by as much as 68 percent," Gonzalez said, with apparel and accessories at 47 percent and video games, 43 percent.

"The important thing to keep in mind is that the average discount across all retailers is 37 percent," Gonzalez said. "Anything less than that means that it's not a true Black Friday bargain."

Among WalletHub findings:

--DVDs and Blu-rays are almost always heavily discounted for Black Friday.

--Many retailers are heavily discounting older generation models of smart home devices and, in some cases, even newer models.

--Video games that are less than a month old tend to get discounted during Black Friday.

--Black Friday and Cyber Monday are the best sales days for athletic footwear.

--Even though toys sell well during the holiday season, retailers will still heavily discount the hottest toys of the year on Black Friday. The closer it gets to Christmas, though, the more likely they will sell out.

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"Avoid falling for door-buster and limited-stock deals until you have had a chance to do your own research on the brand and price history," Hollenbeck said. "More often than not, a door-buster deal may not actually be saving you that much money or it may be on a brand that has consistently low reviews from users."

Hollenbeck also has advice for online shoppers. "If you're worried about missing out on an item in limited supply, move it to your cart," she said.

Gonzalez said shoppers should set a budget for how much they're willing to spend since impulse buying and overspending are common this season.

"Lastly, making sure their credit cards are in good standing is also very important before setting out to shop for Black Friday," Gonzalez said.

The Decatur Police Department recommended that when holiday shoppers buy expensive items like video game consoles, computers and TVs, they should safely store them at home as soon as possible.

"While shopping, always lock these items and other valuables in the trunk to prevent them from being visible to others," said police spokeswoman Emily Long.

Other safety tips:

--Keep your wallet or purse concealed in a coat or close to you.

--Only take out money when prompted at the registers.

--Always park in a well-lit space.

"The Decatur Police Department will have extra patrols across the city to monitor all major retail locations," Long said. "Both on-duty and off-duty officer assignments are being used to ensure the safety of shoppers."

[email protected] or 256-340-2438. Twitter @DD_MAccardi.

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