87% of Black Friday deals aren’t as good as you might think

Consumer advocacy group, Which, have been tracking product prices for the last twelve months and found that better bargains are available after Black Friday. The investigation found that 87% of products were the same price or cheaper than their Black Friday price at other times of the year. They also discovered that 46% of products were cheaper on at least one day during the six months after Black Friday.

Which covered retailers including Currys PC World, Amazon, John Lewis and Argos and tracked 94 popular products for six months before and after Black Friday last year. They found that most goods came down in price after Black Friday for example: A Fitbit tracker was advertised by John Lewis at £99.99 on Black Friday, but by March it had been reduced to £39.99. Also, an LG tv in Amazon’s Black Friday deal was £799, by the end of December it was £150 cheaper. Which used the data to try to determine what was the best time of year to try and buy these products. Some items did hit their lowest prices during the years biggest sale periods, however, they found that most products showed no trend whatsoever.

Only 13% of the products Which surveyed were at their lowest price of the year during Black Friday, meaning the same price wasn’t found at any other point during the year. Even now Black Friday has been extended to the two weeks surrounding the day, Which found that 76% of products were still cheaper or the same price at other times of the year, and 74% of products could be picked up for the same price or less in the six months after Black Friday.

What the Shops Said

Amazon told Which: “We offer many thousands of incredible deals around Black Friday representing millions of pounds of savings for our customers across a vast selection of Products.”

Argos said: “During Black Friday our customers benefit from a huge range of deals on a wide range of products, all at the same time. This does not exclude these products from other promotions.”

Currys PC World said: “While our prices like all retailers, can fluctuate throughout the year, we’re proud to offer our Price Promise across our entire range – and this covers the Black Friday trading period.”

John Lewis said that prices are matched throughout the year as part of its Never Knowingly Undersold commitment, meaning that when high street competitors run promotions its prices are lowered to match, and that Black Friday period is no different.

How to bag a Black Friday Bargain

Which’s investigation discovered that genuine deals are few and far between on Black Friday, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t any bargains at all. Beware that just because a shop claims they are offering huge discounts doesn’t mean they are at there lowest available price. Find out about deals ahead of time, if you have a favourite retailer or know where you can get your items from, sign up to their newsletters and check social media pages, this will tell you what is going to be on offer. Don’t worry about missing out, unless you are in a rush, it may pay to wait until after Black Friday. Do not impulse buy, Black Friday also gives retailers the opportunity to push stock that maybe has not sold so well in the past and you could end up with items you did not intend to purchase. Download a price tracker, this will give you a full history of how much has been charged for any particular item in the past. They also track items across hundreds of retailers.