{"id":22937,"date":"2025-11-16T03:33:55","date_gmt":"2025-11-16T03:33:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/finderica.com\/?p=22937"},"modified":"2025-11-16T03:33:55","modified_gmt":"2025-11-16T03:33:55","slug":"were-ss-deal-experts-and-heres-our-black-friday-take","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/finderica.com\/?p=22937","title":{"rendered":"We\u2019re SS Deal Experts, and Here\u2019s Our Black Friday Take"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Hi! I\u2019m Amanda. <\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019m Tommy. <\/span><\/p>\n

And we\u2019re deal experts! (Can you hear us shouting it in unison?)<\/span><\/p>\n

We gave ourselves the title, but we do know deals. We literally shop for a living, scouring the internet for the best discounts during the biggest sale periods of the year. Since we work at SS, we try to be smart with our spending decisions, even when the Black Friday hype hits the fan. <\/span><\/div>\n
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    We\u2019ve covered major shopping events for more than four years, including Black Friday and Prime Day.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n

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    We tracked prices on everyone\u2019s favorite tech, home and toy items for years to see if Black Friday prices fulfilled those retailer promises.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n

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    We\u2019ve spoken with dozens of industry experts in the retail and shopping spaces, along with academics who study supply chains, tariffs, marketing strategies and more.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n

    Come along with us as we chat about all things Black Friday (Nov. 28) \u2013 how we\u2019re feeling about the deals, what economic factors might come into play as you shop, and what\u2019s on our lists this year. <\/span><\/p>\n

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    How are we feeling about Black Friday this year? <\/h2>\n<\/div>\n
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    Amanda Barroso<\/span> <\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

    Amanda<\/span>: My first thought is\u2026I\u2019m a little bored? We just came off of <\/span><\/p>\n

    Amazon\u2019s October Prime Big Deal Days sale and all the other competing retailer sales. I just sort of wonder what’s going to be new, you know? I do look forward to seeing what some of the smaller, local shops have to offer. How are you feeling about it?<\/span><\/p>\n

    Tommy<\/span>: I’m overwhelmed. That’s the word. I like saving money, but I find all these early deals exhausting. <\/span><\/p>\n

    Amanda<\/span>: It’s funny, just logging on Instagram, Tiktok \u2014 it does feel a little bit like we’re being inundated with gift guides and hauls from all sides.<\/span><\/p>\n

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    \"Tommy <\/div>
    Tommy Tindall<\/span> <\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

    Tommy<\/span>: Sometimes I wonder if I would rather just spend an extra $20 on everything for all of this hype to go away? I’ll pay full price if they just leave me alone. <\/span><\/p>\n

    Amanda<\/span>: With three kids, I don\u2019t know if you could afford that! <\/span><\/p>\n

    Tommy:<\/span> True.<\/span><\/p>\n

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    Is there really a best time to buy?<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n

    Amanda<\/span>: This is the question we return to every year at Black Friday. Is there really a best time to buy, or has that idea become a myth? <\/span><\/p>\n

    Tommy<\/span>: Paying attention to prices is more important than timing, I’d say. You can get a sense for what\u2019s a good deal by just looking at the price history. And as we\u2019ve seen, good prices come and go whether sales are happening or not.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Amanda<\/span>: I track products, too. I add items to my cart and check in every couple days to see what the price is. That helps me, because when the actual Black Friday sales happen, I can spot a real deal or just hype.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Tommy<\/span>: I\u2019m like you \u2014 I save items I want in my cart and watch. I know how low the price has gone in the past. I get it when a good deal strikes. <\/span><\/p>\n

    Amanda<\/span>: I\u2019m always surprised when I see a lower price the week before a big sale than during the actual sale.<\/span><\/p>\n

    New technologies allow retailers to change prices by the day, hour or minute. That can be really frustrating, and it\u2019s a lot different than previous Black Friday pricing models. <\/span><\/p>\n

    I can remember waking up early the day after Thanksgiving with my mom and driving to Best Buy to get in line to buy a DVD player. I might be aging myself, but that memory feels really different from what Black Friday shopping is like today. <\/span><\/p>\n

    Tommy:<\/span> Is it weird that I miss those days? Now browser extensions make it easy to spot truly low prices. That said, those who don\u2019t get a kick out of all the research can go into Black Friday knowing there will be lots of great deals.<\/span><\/div>\n

    Amanda<\/span>: True \u2014 but they might also get caught up and overspend, too. I think the best thing you can do is have a list of your \u2018must haves\u2019 and track those in the weeks leading up to a big sale. <\/span><\/p>\n

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    More stories like this? Yes, please! <\/h3>\n

    Find exclusive content, rich storytelling, first-person accounts, trending news and original reporting in the SS app. <\/span>