Are you prepared for this year’s Cyber Monday?

While everyone is already buzzing about Black Friday, we shouldn’t forget that Cyber Monday closely follows it. And while it has a theoretically set date and day of the week, we all know that these sales events not only start earlier sometimes but also carry on to the weekend and to Tuesday too. To the delight of the customers, there are a lot of tech discounts associated with Cyber Monday, but there are also many other deals you can take advantage of!

In order to be ready to take full advantage of this year’s Cyber Monday, we have gathered some of the most important questions to understand the event and some suggestions for what to do and what to avoid doing. We are sure they are going to help you prepare for the sale event and help you not be overwhelmed as we round up this year’s big tech sale event!

Let us know what you plan on getting this year!

What and When is Cyber Monday?

Generally, Cyber Monday is the immediate Monday that follows Black Friday, and the sale event seems to be a continuation over the weekend and into the first day of the week! This means that a lot of deals are carried over from one event to the other, with similar deals popping up but with different stock numbers and even some exclusive ones for the Monday event too!

This year, Cyber Monday is going to fall on November 28th, so there is still enough time to prepare for this sales event. If you have an Amazon Prime Account already, you may have seen that there have been some pre-sales that showed a sneak peek into how the discounts will look this year. The ‘Prime Early Access Sale’ was in mid-October, and many other retailers have put on similar sales to rival theirs and showcase their own discounts.

Is it as good as Black Friday?

The easy answer is no because their general features are so similar that it is almost impossible to distinguish between the two sales events and say that Cyber Monday is better or worse. However, there is a big difference between what market analysts have seen over the years about what people are bound to be buying in each of the sales, despite the focus on electronics for the Monday event.

Despite its name, Cyber Monday is not actually all about tech products, as people seem to hurry to get their personal electronics on Black Friday instead. On Cyber Monday, customers seem to start thinking about the upcoming holidays and end up getting more miscellaneous items for loved ones. This isn’t to say that there are no personal use items bought in this event or that tech is not bought either, but the percentages indicate an incline towards certain products.

Not to mention, there are a lot of highly sought-after items that are bound to be sold out by the time Cyber Monday rolls around, so be careful what you want to get and how popular it is.

Is Cyber Monday too late to cash in on the best deals?

The short answer is that no, it is not too late to get some of the best deals around. However, since it comes right after Black Friday, it may happen that there will be a few things that have sold out. Despite this, there is a certain stock of products that are being kept for this sale, not to mention that you will always be able to find something amazing.

However, you shouldn’t count on the really big brands to have heavy discounts or still have a lot of stock of the biggest products: after all, brands like Apple are notorious for going low on stock and even out of stock really fast when there is any type of bigger discount going on. With Cyber Monday, we will be seeing that too, but you can still get some pretty nice deals. You just have to plan accordingly!

Make the most of it: Take advantage of Cyber Monday early!

Like with the Black Friday debacle, you shouldn’t leave everything for the last minute. Not only will it end up being overwhelming, but you run the risk of ending up disappointed. While we all have a general knowledge of what is going to end up being on sale at one point or another, there is also a bigger risk that what you would be interested in will not be available anymore by the time you get online.

It’s not always true to the “early bird gets the worm” saying, as there are deals and sales you can catch even after the timer has started. However, there are retailers, like Amazon, for example, that will not only have sudden flash deals, but they will also come in limited quantities because the items have some great prices. So do your due diligence and have a look beforehand at what is going to be included in the sales for Cyber Monday!

Mistake #1: Not being prepared

This is one of the most common mistakes a lot of people who want to take advantage of Cyber Monday make. While a lot of us are thinking of just browsing for that perfect item or just taking advantage of a good deal we see, it is hard to shop like that or to even make the most of the sale event if you don’t plan.

You should definitely be planning ahead of time, no matter if you are going to end up buying something in the end or not. For example, if you are looking to replace your old TV with a new, more performant one, you should be looking at which ones would suit your needs: how big you want it to be; do you need a 4K one or not; what brands and features you want it to have; and most importantly, your budget! How much are you willing to spend on the item you want that will drastically change your choices?

And this goes for most items you are planning to buy, especially if they come with a higher price tag. Knowing what you want and how much it usually goes for will be a big help in both securing a good price for what you want and also making sure you’re not just buying something you don’t need or not fit for you just because there’s a Cyber Monday deal.

Mistake #2: Being set on one item

This one goes hand in hand with the first mistake we discussed, and you should not let it ruin your opportunity to take advantage of Cyber Monday. While we all have that one item we really want in mind, there is a chance that you will not be as fast as others, and you may miss out on it. Instead of despairing that you didn’t get that one item you wanted, you should use your research beforehand and have some alternatives.

Maybe it isn’t that one item you were dead set on buying, but it may be the second best and resemble it, so it shouldn’t be a problem getting that one instead of the one you initially wanted. The key point is to try to have one or two ideas or choices because you can never know; it can happen, you can miss out on a deal, or it may happen that the discount isn’t as big as you envisioned it on the item you wanted most.

Don’t stay loyal to one brand and miss out on a good deal.

Which retailers should you have your eye on?

If we are talking about which shops you should make sure to check first and foremost, there are three that have always come forward with some of the best offers (and good stocks) that you could have asked for. Of course, we are talking about Walmart, Best Buy, and Amazon. This is because year after year, not only do they make sure to have the stocks ready, but they also make sure to provide discounts that are going to be worth your while.

Like always, we recommend that you check out what they will offer on sale and be up to date with their juiciest deals, especially if you do not plan to only buy tech products.

Others that are not so tech-heavy or that do not deal with tech products at all, despite the name of the sale being Cyber Monday that you should still make sure to check out are Macy’s, Staples, and Kohl’s, especially if you’re looking for anything furniture or clothing. Others that are even more specialized but do have some great deals you would be interested in are Samsung, DJI, and B&H Photo!

Before you get ready for Cyber Monday, make sure you are also prepared for Black Friday by not missing out on these hot deals!