Each year, millions of shoppers across the nation line up outside their favorite local stores in hopes of landing the absolute best prices on Christmas gifts and other items. While Black Friday has become a much anticipated day of the year for many anxious shoppers, some things are better left undone.
Black Friday has become a well known white elephant for many shoppers during the Christmas season in recent years. While it is true that shoppers can score some pretty amazing deals in the early hours of the morning on the Friday after Thanksgiving, (and these days sometimes even on the evening of Thanksgiving), the Black Friday extravaganza has slowly begun to intrude on the true meaning of the entire holiday season all together. As shopping venues ruthlessly compete against each other to offer the best prices of the season, consumers battle with each other (sometimes even physically) for products that are quickly disappearing from showroom shelves.
A few days before the event is scheduled to begin, merchants across the nation begin unveiling their advertisements for astonishing price breaks on an abundance of items in their store in the attempt to draw consumers in. Friends, family members and coworkers everywhere are seen reviewing newspaper inserts and flyers and comparing notes in preparation for the big day. While, on the outside, the whole idea sounds like a great way to kick off the Christmas shopping season, unbeknownst to many consumers, the reality of Black Friday is actually more trouble than it is worth.
With the pressure to be the first store to offer door busters for the event, many shopping venues are deciding to open their doors as early as the afternoon of Thanksgiving Day itself. Since so many preparations need to be made in most stores before Black Friday begins, employees are being forced to cut their family Thanksgiving celebrations extremely short, or forget about them altogether, and instead spend this important holiday stocking shelves. Additionally, consumers who are adamant about purchasing items that are in high demand on Black Friday, like televisions and other electronics, popular toys, and video gaming systems, are leaving gatherings with family and friends so that they can get in line and be among the first to enter the doors.
In addition to interfering with the Thanksgiving Holiday, consumers are faced with such a high paced shopping experience, that they often make frivolous purchases and buy gifts that they would normally not have wanted to purchase. Shoppers frequently overspend as well, sometimes destroying their entire Christmas shopping budget altogether, due to the excitement of getting unbelievable prices on a variety of items during this famous shopping event. In reality, however, many times consumers can score the same, or even better deals on their favorite items as Christmas Day draws closer simply because Black Friday just doesn’t have the impact it used to have, and merchants are forced to offer more astonishing deals throughout the weeks before the holiday.
This holiday season, challenge yourself to resist the urge to cut your Thanksgiving Holiday short. Don’t stand in out in the cold at the wee hours of the morning in order to enter a store that doesn’t have your best interest at heart. Avoid the temptation to battle with other shoppers in order to obtain the items you want. Don’t fall for the materialistic scam called Black Friday. Stay home. Enjoy your holiday celebrations with your family and friends. And when you are ready? Log into your home computer and surf the web from the comfort and safety of your own home, where you can find even more impressive sales and more unique gifts, all while preserving the joy of giving during the holiday season.
