What is a Doorbuster on Black Friday?

Black Friday is a crazy fun time filled with sales and specials. One of the best parts of these sales is known as Doorbusters. Doorbusters are specials which are so great that people are willing to practically bust down the door to get to it! It really does happen in some cities, though most are civil enough to be great fun conquering the purchase!

Doorbusters change from year to year, but the bargain stays the same! Some examples of great door busters are the $99 price tag on a 42 inch television or a $19 price on a child's bicycle! Both of these are super prices and are well within most budgets, therefore they are really magnets for shoppers. If the shoppers are attracted to the bargain, then they will make a deliberate effort to be at that store when the doors open. They will be in line early despite the time, the weather or the wait.

Many doorbusters occur at unusual times, or they only last for a specific time frame. In the past, there have been many that began on the morning of Black Friday at as early as 4 a.m. and lasting only as late as 10 a.m. There have also been some that were Moonlight Madness Doorbusters. Items that went on sale at a later time such as 10 p.m. and lasting until midnight. Others, more recently, have even begun at midnight on Thanksgiving night making the Black Friday sales last the entire 24 hour period of that Friday following Thanksgiving!

It takes great planning to make the Black Friday sales and doorbusters pay off. There are as many strategies as there are shoppers! The most important part of it all is knowing the sales and the times that the items are for sale!

The temperature can quickly weed out those who are not true Black Friday Door Busters! A true Doorbuster price will bring out those people who are willing to literally bust through the open doors regardless of the time or the temperature. A bitter cold morning, snow or ice will drive not only the temperatures down, but the number of door busting customers will drop as well. This can make the competition a bit more friendly OR it can make it a bit more desperate.

Waiting in line in the bitter cold can flare up tempers and make people who want to get their bargains a bit more desperate. They really have a drive to make the time and suffering count! Those who are really needing the item and have to maintain a tight budget will not be daunted by mere temperatures. It is merely another obstacle to their victory. It actually makes the victory even more sweet.

Bitter cold or snow and ice can also help shoppers in that many people will leave the elderly and the small children at home where they are safer and warmer. This helps to eliminate the extra bodies in the crowd and streamlines the shopping. It also evens out the field somewhat. Those with elderly shopping buddies and small children in tow are often slowed down and held back a bit. While they are safe at home, then the shopper is free to join the throng and surge into the open doors!

The pulse of the crowd "warms" a bit when it is cold. It seems to make it more like Christmas. We begin to feel winter biting at our toes and noses and it makes it all more real somehow. Some areas have community groups that will take this time to do a bit of fundraising by selling coffee, cocoa or cider to the shoppers as they wait for stores to open their doors. Caroling and laughter are not unheard of and the catching up on gossip is free flowing!

Warm temperatures on the other hand tend to encourage people to bring out EVERYONE in the family. Babies and great-grannies are part of the crowd. It seems like a fun idea at the time, but hours later, both generations are worn out, tired and fussy! They are done and want to go home. The stress of the crowd wears off their good humor. It is NO fun when you are exhausted and stressed out - regardless of your age.

Another challenge warm weather creates is people are more likely to be temperamental and testy when they are warm. Tempers flare when they don't get what they want, there is no place to park, too many people are in line, there is no room to move, and the list goes on and on! Stores have on lights, LOTS of hot, bright lights. The heat from the lights makes it even hotter, so it wears on customers even more. Keeping it together in spite of the warmth, will be a challenge that door busting faithfuls will overcome if they are thinking ahead enough to plan for it! Bring water, leave the fun shoppers at home, this is WAR. Only the prepared, price warriors should take the step to be out there on the battlefield!

If you want the best prices, you have to be willing to wait! Sometimes it is HOURS of waiting. Waiting outside the doors, pressed on all sides, battling the weather and the crowd gets you in the door. You race to capture your prized doorbuster items and then you wait, wait, wait.....just to check out! Yes, it can be hours more just to pay for your item. It is possible to minimize the wait by bringing someone to specifically wait in line for you. Consider whom you choose, however. It must be someone who will be devoted to staying in one spot regardless of the bargains that are calling! One step out of line and they start all over again!

They also need to be someone who can withstand the attitudes of the others in line. Sometimes your line holder will be in line without any purchase in their arms. This can make those who are overloaded with items grumpy when you arrive with items to buy. Some people do not always exhibit the "holiday spirit" when in line on Black Friday. If your line holder is a meek and timid granny, then she may be overwhelmed by the attitudes and be more upset than it is worth. If she is a ornery, sassy and personable gal, she will have made friends and will be having a great time, so it is all good! Pick carefully in order to maintain your happy camp throughout the day!

Sometimes you will find yourself waiting in line to get a parking space, then in line the bitter cold for hours, just to get into the door and then once you get your item, then you wait in line to check out. There is a lot of waiting. This is often the time that will weed out those who are not REAL Black Friday Shoppers!!! It can be done by anyone who has the desire and drive to conquer the lines, the prices and the special gifts. The rewards are absolutely worth it!