Subscribe to store email lists. Decide on which stores you want to shop at least a couple of weeks in advance. Then visit each store’s website, and subscribe to its email list. Early sign-up will ensure you receive all promotional emails for the season’s big Black Friday and Cyber Monday events as well as ongoing savings right on through Christmas Eve.

Buy discounted gift cards. Visit Raise.com and order discounted gift cards for the stores from which you know you’ll purchase. You can use these cards to buy sale and special-buy items for added savings. Make sure the gift cards are for stores you’ll definitely shop at so you don’t blow your savings. Discounted gift cards also make great gifts.

Begin collecting Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals that show up in your newspaper, mailbox, and email. Also, visit your favorite stores online a few days in advance to see what kind of deals they will offer. Print any coupons you find and store them together in a safe place.

Organize for the big day. Once you’ve collected all the deals, sort through and match them up to your holiday shopping list. Compare deals and determine when the sales or doorbusters begin, and if there will be limited quantities. If you can’t stand in line for hours for a limited quantity doorbuster, skip it and focus on other deals that are easier to fetch.

Prepare a ‘second best’ list. You can’t be everywhere at once, and you are sure to miss a deal or two. Prepare in advance for that possibility and know where to go and what to look for as an alternative.

Watch for early bird freebies. Many stores offer free gifts to the first 25 or 100 people in their store. It’s true – there are some pretty nice prizes to be had. But many will require you to arrive well before the crack of dawn and spend hours waiting in line. Before you succumb to these lures, consider whether it’s worth the risk of losing out on savings elsewhere.

Black Friday isn’t always the best day for hot bargains. Do your research. Stores tout their Black Friday deals to get consumers into a buying frenzy early in the season. Some even offer their super deals on Thanksgiving evening and start to reduce prices on Wednesday. Keep in mind, all those Black Friday deals also often can be found online on Cyber Monday. In fact, many hot deals – and some better deals – stretch well into December.

Shop late in the day. If you are like many, you wouldn’t even consider shopping on Black Friday simply because of the chaos. But on Black Friday the vast majority of shoppers start at the crack of dawn or earlier. By 5 p.m. early birds are beat, and malls and stores are dead quiet. So Black Friday evening is a great time to get in some peaceful, early shopping with plenty of great deals still going on.

Shop online. This is another option if you don’t want to participate in the madhouse. Many stores offer the same deals online as they do in their stores. In fact, many online stores don’t even have storefronts. Keep in mind supplies are often limited, even online. By the time you reach checkout, an item in your basket might be sold out. If you’re shopping for multiple items from a store, do multiple checkouts, so the items in your basket don’t disappear while you shop.

More holiday shopping tips

Arrange your finances in advance. If you intend to pay by credit card, plan well in advance, so the credit is available to you. Make your credit card payments at least two weeks in advance to allow time for processing. Use your credit cards that offer cash back or reward points to increase your savings. If paying with a debit card, check your balance before you head out to avoid an unwelcome surprise. Also, avoid carrying cash in chaotic crowds because of the increased risk of pickpockets and purse snatchers.

Leave the kids at home. The chaos of the holiday shopping season, especially Black Friday, poses risks to children. Although the chance is slim, there is a potential risk of trampling by crazed crowds on Black Friday. Your child also could get lost among the mob. Besides, shopping for long hours is stressful and exhausting for kids. Not to mention, it will increase your own stress level and deplete your energy.

Avoid carts. On Black Friday, carry shopping bags or totes instead unless you plan to buy heavy items. Carts will slow you down in crowds that are unwilling to budge for you.

Hold off on toy purchases. Black Friday doesn’t offer the best deals on toys. The first week of December usually provides more significant savings on these items.

Use social media for extra savings. Many retailers offer exclusive coupons and discounts to people who like them on Facebook or other social media. Check the social media accounts of the stores where you plan to shop.

Check return policies. Most, but not all, major retailers have liberal return policies. Do your homework before you make purchases. Also, ask for gift receipts to make exchanges and returns easy for your gift recipients.

Avoid impulse buying. Many shoppers’ savings go right down the drain because they grab unnecessary “great buys” in the spur of the moment. Prepare yourself mentally for the temptation before you head out.

Net extra savings with instant store credit. Most stores offer 10-25% savings by opening a store credit card at checkout. If you pay your charges off immediately and don’t use the card for unnecessary purchases, it is well worth the savings. Otherwise, the long-term cost of interest will exceed your savings.

Make sure a sale is really a sale. Some stores mark up merchandise before they reduce it to make it look like a great bargain. Furniture stores in particular are known for this tactic. But many other stores do it as well on select merchandise. Do your homework.

Don’t waste time trying to price match. On Black Friday and Cyber Monday, stores typically don’t honor price matching. The rest of the year, it is worth your time to do so.

Be prepared to wait. Before you head out, add your email account, music, audiobooks, or video games to your phone, so you have entertainment for the long wait in line. Better yet, spend your time in line visiting online stores and watch for rotating deals. Also, download a Black Friday deals app such as Dealnews, Slickdeals, Shopkick, Flipp, or The Coupons App.

Organize yourself for rebates. Print rebate forms in advance so you don’t lose track of them. Also, request duplicate receipts for rebate purchases, and store them in a safe place in your wallet or purse. If you shop online, download the Ebates app for automatic rebates when you buy on participating websites.

Forego extended warranties. With a few exceptions, extended warranties are a waste of money. Most electronics already come with a limited manufacturer’s warranty. Defects usually show up within the scope of the manufacturer’s warranty. Accidental damage that might be covered under a store’s extended warranty tends to occur rarely. Cell phones or small personal electronics people carry with them that are likely to get dropped, lost, or run through the washing machine are the exception.

Cyber Safety Shopping Tips from the Center for Cyber Safety and Education:

Here are a few simple safe shopping tips we recommend at the Center for Cyber Safety and Education:

1. Be wary of clicking on an advertisement for a product that you received in an email or see on social media. If in doubt, simply go to your browser, type in the store’s address and search for the special there.
2. Make sure you’re on the site you want to be on. If you search for a store or product online, use extreme caution when you see the results. Either type in the address as suggested above or double-check once you click on the link that you really went to the site where you planned to shop. 
3. Make sure you see “https” (not just http) in the URL. The “S” means the organization is leveraging encryption for its online transactions. Organizations not supporting https are opening their customers to having their online transactions intercepted.
4. Create strong, unique passwords on every site using at least 8 characters. The more the better! Use two-factor authentication when offered and do not reuse passwords.

Want more safe shopping tips? Head over to our Parents Tips page on Safe Shopping. It’s also worth mentioning to slow down and think before you click. Take your time when shopping online and going through sales emails. Don’t risk compromising your identity or safety on accident when in a hurry.

The post Black Friday, Cyber Monday, & Beyond: How to Cash in on Super Holiday Savings appeared first on SWFL Family.

Pat Crave, the director of the Center for Cyber Safety and Education, answered some questions for Neapolitan Family about internet safety while traveling.

What are your top tips for Internet safety while traveling?

• Don’t post pictures on social media of your vacation while you are still on the trip. This could alert thieves that your home is unattended. (You don’t stop the mail and newspaper for the same reason.)

• Don’t connect to unsecure wi-fi at your hotel or during your travel. If you don’t have to enter a password, or the password is generic and the same for everyone, it isn’t secure. If you do have to connect, don’t do any sensitive transactions like check bank accounts, etc.

• Bring your own phone chargers and cords. Don’t use those free stations (with their cords) that you find in public places. You don’t know what that cord is really connected to behind the kiosk. Plug into a wall plug like you would normally do.

Turn off Bluetooth and wi-fi connections on your devices when you are not using them. This will limit hackers’ ability to connect to your device without you even knowing it (good advice all the time, not just traveling.)

How can we make parents more aware of the dangers?

Most parents are intimidated by technology today. It is all new to us and we can’t keep up with the constant changes. Instead of embarrassing ourselves with “stupid” questions to our children, we go along with what they are doing and saying without doing any homework on our own. What parent hasn’t asked their child for help with a phone or computer? We live with the belief that our child won’t do anything dangerous or stupid online. But their definition of dangerous is different than ours. They grew up chatting with strangers online, giving out personal information to online friends and downloading the latest apps. All things we were raised to never do. Their trust level is high and suspicions are low.

Parents need to be involved in what their child is doing on- line. They need to have conversations and ask questions. I’m not saying you have to interrogate them but be involved. Help them understand the dangers that exist online and help them learn how to make good decision. On our website www.SafeAndSecureOn- line.org/parents you will find videos and tip sheets to help parents with these exact issues.

With many apps, like SnapChat, locations services are turned on, and most people don’t even realize it. Why is this dangerous? This is an issue with most apps and with phones themselves. We all need to go through our devices on a regular basis and turn off the unnecessary tracking and notification settings on our phones and apps. Did you know there is a tracking device or geo-tagging on your phone’s camera? It not only takes a picture but marks exactly where it was taken. So, when you post it online someone can figure out where you are or where you live, all hidden in a photo. The danger of tracking is just that – you are giving away personal information that isn’t necessary. There is no need for strangers to have all that information. It can lead to stalking, harassment, bullying, or worse.

What should people know before using public wi-fi?

You should avoid using public wi-fi if possible. That includes ones at your hotel and local coffee shop unless you know it is se- cure. If you don’t have to put in a password or it asks for a generic password like “hotelguest,” then it is not secure. If you are given a unique password when checking into the hotel, you are more likely to be on a secure network. Often that password will be your last name and room number that no one else would know. Don’t hesitate to ask at the desk about their security.

Don’t be fooled by the name that comes up on the wi-fi. When setting up a wi-fi connection you can name it anything you want. So just because it says your hotel name, your favorite coffee shop or call “Secure Wi-fi”, doesn’t mean that it is their trusted site.

Pat Crave’s best (and most effective tip) is also the most simple, yet hardest for many of us, to carry out.

Remember you are on vacation…UNPLUG! Get off the grid for a few days and enjoy your time together. Make memories that you can post about later when you get home. Your friends (and work) will all still be there when you get home.

The post How to Stay Safe Online While Traveling (and at Home) appeared first on SWFL Family.