bethanne Posted November 20, 2015 Posted November 20, 2015 I'm not sure if this is the right thread to ask this but it's kind of on this track so I'm hoping for some advice. I'm looking to get a Zoomer Kitty and the Fur Real Friend StarLily unicorn for my daughters and I'm wondering since they are "hot" toys this year if the prices that are in the Black Friday ads are as low as they are going to go or if they may reduce further after the initial frenzy. I don't want to wait too long though and they be sold out because they're the only things my kids have asked for from Santa. Any thoughts on what the trends have been in previous years? This is the first year my kids have asked for very specific (and pricey) items so I'm trying to figure out what to do. Thanks!
Dylansmommy Posted November 20, 2015 Posted November 20, 2015 I'm not sure if this is the right thread to ask this but it's kind of on this track so I'm hoping for some advice. I'm looking to get a Zoomer Kitty and the Fur Real Friend StarLily unicorn for my daughters and I'm wondering since they are "hot" toys this year if the prices that are in the Black Friday ads are as low as they are going to go or if they may reduce further after the initial frenzy. I don't want to wait too long though and they be sold out because they're the only things my kids have asked for from Santa. Any thoughts on what the trends have been in previous years? This is the first year my kids have asked for very specific (and pricey) items so I'm trying to figure out what to do. Thanks!You really take a chance in risking an item selling out by waiting for the price to drop, especially if it's popular. I would just buy it and return it later if you find it cheaper. 1
bribri25 Posted November 20, 2015 Posted November 20, 2015 I'm not sure if this is the right thread to ask this but it's kind of on this track so I'm hoping for some advice. I'm looking to get a Zoomer Kitty and the Fur Real Friend StarLily unicorn for my daughters and I'm wondering since they are "hot" toys this year if the prices that are in the Black Friday ads are as low as they are going to go or if they may reduce further after the initial frenzy. I don't want to wait too long though and they be sold out because they're the only things my kids have asked for from Santa. Any thoughts on what the trends have been in previous years? This is the first year my kids have asked for very specific (and pricey) items so I'm trying to figure out what to do. Thanks! You're not likely to get much cheaper, but more than likely to sell out and no longer be available before the end of the year.
Stowasser Posted November 20, 2015 Posted November 20, 2015 usually by now I see some better deals pop up but maybe its we don't have a wish list going this year not seeing as great of deals as years past
katkat777 Posted November 21, 2015 Posted November 21, 2015 To a point I think the deals are behind us. I think we see a lot of great deals during the season. I am not a fan of what BF has become. In the past, there were some hard core bargain shoppers looking for the best deals. Now everyone is into the hype and wants to go out and see what BF is all about 1
MaryEllen2014 Posted November 22, 2015 Posted November 22, 2015 On line shopping has made it easier. There is no fighting traffic, the crowds, bad weather etc. you can accomplish more online quicker than going store to store. I loved BF shopping back in the day but the Internet and home shopping on tv has made life easier. Most places now offer free shipping too. Plus it's not 15 degrees in my house [emoji6] 1
blueat40 Posted November 23, 2015 Posted November 23, 2015 With more and more deals available online (with free shipping) and fewer really great deals in store, I too believe the day of the great BF deals may be over. The only store I intend to visit on BF this year is a craft store! Everything else will be online shopping.
julz0420 Posted November 24, 2015 Posted November 24, 2015 Just looking at how many pages total this forum has this year compared to even a few years ago, I'd say yes. But just like I will continue to torture myself by staying a St. Louis Rams fan, I'll continue to come here and BF shop. I'm hard headed like that LOL 1
Scooby_Doo Posted November 24, 2015 Posted November 24, 2015 Just looking at how many pages total this forum has this year compared to even a few years ago, I'd say yes.I noticed this last year too
Brad Posted November 25, 2015 Posted November 25, 2015 Just looking at how many pages total this forum has this year compared to even a few years ago, I'd say yes. Yet the amount of stuff people are buying through this site has never been higher. Up until a couple years ago the major stores didn't release ads themselves, so you had to go to a site like this to get them which meant a lot of discussion. Now there are so many sites out there that cover BF - it's not just BF and deal sites anymore. Tech sites, consumer sites, even general news sites cover it because it's so mainstream. A lot of the discussion that used to happen here on the forum now happens on Facebook as well. For example, the post on our FB page about the Walmart ad being posted has around 700 comments and there are another 200 comments on the actual WM ad page on our BF site. That's around 900 comments that aren't here on the forum anymore. The thread on the forum for the WM ad has 113 posts. 4
Pnambic Posted November 25, 2015 Posted November 25, 2015 From a slightly different angle, I believe it's because retailers have far more current information and more immediate control over their pricing today than they did 5 years ago, 10 years, 15 years... That means throughout the year, they are waging a much more intense priging war with their competitors that have driven margins lower. So there's not as much pad there to discount when it comes to Black Friday. Remember - the stores aren't doing this as a gift to us all, they're trying desperately to earn revenue. And the smart stores recognize that they can do clearance stuff all year round these days. With much greater knowledge and understanding of how their products are selling on a day to day basis (used to be month to month or even quarter to quarter), retailers are more actively managing it throughout the year. That means a little less left overs for Black Friday. Also, in the past it may have taken a couple months of lead time to get that Black Friday ad all put together manually and sent to the printers and ready for the sale. It took weeks just to communicate the prices down to the stores in advance. No one wants to be the fool that discounts their front page big deal TV to $400 just to have your competitor discount it to $350 and steal all your thunder. So it was a lot more hush hush and top secret. These days, the prices in the ads can be changed in seconds and a completely new add can be created in minutes, printing them still takes a little while, but most people get their ads digitally these days anyway. That gives retailers a lot more control over what they're selling and for how much. Black Friday is changing. The retailers still love it. It's a massive marketing campaign that's already rolling and its much easier to keep something rolling than to try and start something new. Consumers are aware of it all over the US and beyond now and some are even dependant on it for their holiday needs. But retailers are always learning and looking for new ways to make a buck. The ones that don't, or don't do a good job of it go out of business. Retailers are tracking your purchases to learn about you individually as well as "us" regionally to help them target us better. They're figuring us out much faster than we're figuring them out (in general, though members of sites like these are likely to be keeping it roughly even probably).
julz0420 Posted November 26, 2015 Posted November 26, 2015 Well I still miss all the excitement here. lol I loved the face pace of the forums, the crazy stories and pictures. 1
tinkrbel Posted November 27, 2015 Posted November 27, 2015 (edited) possibly...but I kind of enjoyed getting everything done BEFORE Black Friday and in a pretty leisurely manner. For the 1st time ever, I was in a fitting room near Black Friday. I got an awesome deal on juniors star wars shirts at macys after coupon came to 3 shifts/tanks for $15 Edited November 27, 2015 by tinkrbel
len_mullen Posted November 27, 2015 Posted November 27, 2015 Yet the amount of stuff people are buying through this site has never been higher. Up until a couple years ago the major stores didn't release ads themselves, so you had to go to a site like this to get them which meant a lot of discussion. Now there are so many sites out there that cover BF - it's not just BF and deal sites anymore. Tech sites, consumer sites, even general news sites cover it because it's so mainstream. A lot of the discussion that used to happen here on the forum now happens on Facebook as well. For example, the post on our FB page about the Walmart ad being posted has around 700 comments and there are another 200 comments on the actual WM ad page on our BF site. That's around 900 comments that aren't here on the forum anymore. The thread on the forum for the WM ad has 113 posts. That is great news. My feeling was that traffic and discussion was less the last couple years. I enjoy the social aspect more that the information gathering. That said, when I want to see what is available at what price, GottaDeal's BF scans, lists, and discussion top any other resource. Need to figure out how to replicate posts from all venues on the others so everyone benefits from all discussion in their preferred app. For next year, you need to begin thinking about leveraging mobile communications -- my lists, find nearby, where I am kind of stuff. That would be a lot of fun. Heat maps of where DG'ers are shopping. Out-of-stock alerts.
verchad Posted November 27, 2015 Posted November 27, 2015 As I sit here, in the comfort of my home, on Black Friday morning, for the first time in probably 20 years, I'd say this topic hits home with me. I'm glad to see it wasn't just me that felt the deals just don't seem to be as good or enticing as they have in years past. My enjoyment of BF shopping started dying a few years ago, when stores started opening on Thursday. I am one of "those" folks who first refused to go out for BF on Thanksgiving day for deals. I enjoyed the modern day hunter/gatherer aspect. Getting out early in the morning, making a plan, (years ago) finding someplace to get coffee at 3 a.m., etc In conversation over Thanksgiving dinner last night, some other BF shopping family members also felt that way too. They were still heading out this morning, but said there wasn't too much they were shopping for. Me, I snagged about 20 things, but all online in the days leading up to today. I know some of my shopping has changed, my daughter is now 16, so I'm not looking for the hot holiday toys like I did when she was little. Now for her it's things like her class ring or her musical instrument that become Christmas/big ticket gifts. When JCP stopped the snow globes, that killed a little of the fun for me. And with the economy being what it is, we're just trying to spend a little less and being careful with what we do spend.
tinkrbel Posted November 27, 2015 Posted November 27, 2015 As I sit here, in the comfort of my home, on Black Friday morning, for the first time in probably 20 years, I'd say this topic hits home with me.So true, I was thinking that as we got home around 10:30pm last night. We still went out this morning for Home Depot poinsettia's and will head back out for 3pm jcpenney snowglobes and maybe drop by bath and body works if mall is as dead as it was last night. We made it to Office Depot for batteries just before 6pm opening (maybe 10-15 ppl in line for electronics of one kind or another) and then headed to Macys where we proceeded to park next to the doors twice (home+mens dept) then Best Buy where again parked on bottom level of parking garage w/o issue before hitting Walmart on our way back. I'm liking these new hours.
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