CONSUMER REPORTS: Black Friday preview, top shopping aggravations

COLORADO HOLIDAY GUIDE
BLACK FRIDAY DEALS
DENVER - The door-buster deal day Black Friday is only days away and Consumer Reports has done some research to figure out not only what people will be buying but also what drives them nuts about holiday shopping.

A recent Consumer Reports survey asked shoppers, "What, if anything, takes the cheer out of the holidays?"

Greg Daugherty with the company says three main things were at the top of most people's lists.

"One is when you get to the cash register and they try to talk you into a credit card for that store," he said. "Consumers don't like the extended warranty sales pitch you get on just about anything you buy these days. And consumers also told us they're tired of being asked for their phone number and e-mail because they know it's going to result in some kind of follow up."

Also on the lists of holiday shopping pet peeves, long check out lines when open cash registers are not staffed, fake sales and coupons with multiple exclusions.

However, Consumer Reports says all of those annoyances combined will not keep nearly 30 percent of those polled from the stores on Black Friday.

Serious shoppers are looking for deals on all types of gifts this Black Friday but one thing tops most lists.

"Clothing is still number one but electronics is a very close second," Daugherty explained. "This year in particular video games and accessories look like they're on a lot of people's lists. And of course a lot of people are buying toys. More than half the people we surveyed are going to be toy shopping on Black Friday."

Daugherty adds that Black Friday shopping will likely spill over into the weekend as shoppers look to get great deals while trying avoid Friday's long lines and large crowds.

"People are spreading it over the whole weekend as many people are likely to be in stores on Saturday and Sunday as are on Friday," he said. "So, people are going to pace themselves and extend it. It's not really one day anymore it's a three-day weekend."

And if you can believe it, three percent of those surveyed said they already had all of their holiday shopping complete.

If you haven't even made a dent in your to-do list check out the Holiday Guide for Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals as well as gift-buying guides. For even more Black Friday deals, click here.