Black Friday Shopping: Your Guide to Making it a Success!

Ah Black Friday. It comes but once a year. The revered and some-what dreaded day after Thanksgiving where stores open early and consumers race out at 5am to get the best deals on their holiday shopping. It's a day of bargains, a day of commercialization and a day of shopping stress. This year you are determined to do everything you can to make the most out of your holiday shopping. How can you do it? By reading my top ten tips for successful Black Friday shopping of course! Read on and happy shopping!

1.Research
Where are the deals? Get out your sales papers, call your friends/neighbors to see what specials they've heard of and start researching. Your shopping experience is only as good as the plan you make ahead of time. Always be prepared, it works for the Girl Scouts, it can work for you too.

2.Get a buddy
Everyone needs a buddy. Someone to research with. Someone to share the day with. Someone to stand in lines while you're racing through the store picking up your goodies. This is especially useful in stores such as Best Buy where the line routinely snakes around the store and bargains are snatched up faster than cupcakes at a kid's party. Also useful when one has to go to the bathroom, one can continue to stock up, or hold purchases while the other is taking care of business. Two heads and two sets of hands, eyes and feet are certainly better than one.

3.Make a list
What store am I going to and what am I looking for. Write down specific items that you are purchasing as well as other items that you should look for (just in case they are having a special in store only promotion that morning). This list is important! It keeps you focused on specific items and eliminates the "Oooohh, look at this!" mentality that can take serious shoppers off their game. Make your list, stick to it.

4.Make a plan
Once you've done your research and you know where the best deals are, make a plan. Decide what store you are hitting for their early-bird special, how much time you are going to stay there and what you need to purchase there. What store do you go to next? Mid-morning specials? Which store has the best late afternoon deals? Do you need to double back to any stores for special discounts at other times of the day? You may need to plan your route out by location of stores. For example, it may make more sense to go from Best Buy to Macy's because they are right next door to each other, as opposed to driving from Best Buy to Sears which is on the other side of town. Make a plan, stick to it.

5.Know your stores
Take a run through of your plan if possible. Walk through each of the stores and get to know the locations of the specific items you need to get, the cashiers and the bathrooms. Come up with your strategy for getting the most out of your time there. If you don't know something, ask. Don't be afraid to ask questions now, there will be no time for questions on B.F. itself.

6.Eat Breakfast
The most important meal of the deal is even more so on Black Friday. You need to start out the morning with a content and happy stomach. A bowl of cereal, oatmeal or bacon and eggs will all do the trick. You something nutritious and filling so that your thoughts will be on the sales and not your tummy. A dose of caffeine is always a good idea as well, coffee, lattes, a diet soda or 2 are all good ideas for pre-gaming the B.F. festivities.

7.Bring a bottle of water
This is a necessity for all marathon shoppers. A bottled water is a MUST have. Pack one in your purse or get one of those bottled-water holders that sling over your shoulder. You need to stay hydrated so you can stay focused on the task in front of you.

8.Pack a snack.
Granola bars, cereal bars, anything handy that you can eat with one hand, while maneuvering a shopping cart with the other. Pack something small that packs a nutritional punch in your day. You're going to be hard core shopping early in the morning. If you're eating breakfast at 5 am, you're going to be hungry for a snack at 8 AM and you DO NOT HAVE TIME to stop. This small, on-the-go snack is just what you'll need to get you through the morning successfully. Also good for a mid-afternoon snack if you are planning on shopping through until dinnertime.

9.Stop for lunch
I guarantee you can fit a 30 min. lunch in there somewhere. If you've mapped out your route, made your detailed plan and list, you will have time for a lunch that won't take too much time out of your shopping. Stop and eat. You'll need that middle of the day pick-me up and a chance to rest your tired feet from all the running around. This is also be the time to go to the bathroom (try, even if you've don't think you have to), call home and let them know you're ok, and go over your plan for the rest of the afternoon.

10. Have a little bit of patience and compassion
Ok, here's where I get serious. Black Friday can be a stressful day for shoppers and store employees alike. So while you're out at the stores, try to be nice to the people that are working there. They had to be up early, they didn't choose to, and they're there to serve you to the best of their ability. If there are no more PlayStation3 systems in the store, screaming and yelling at the employee who told you there isn't any, is not going to make one magically appear. Keep in mind that they too, are human beings, and can only go so fast. They aren't the reason that the lines are long and you have to wait, the sheer number of people in the store, at that time, is the reason for that. One way to keep your day stress-free is to not cause stress for anyone else.

Ok people, now that you've got the tips, you're ready to shop. Go out there and enjoy yourself, Black Friday comes but once a year…
Thank God.