It’s here. the moment we’ve all been waiting for. No not that second of elation as the in-laws finally pull out of your driveway. Nor the serene happiness you feel once your mother and her sisters cease their high-pitched yacking.
It’s Black Friday.
I will admit that I’ve never participated in a Black Friday. It’s not just Black Friday—I laugh quite loudly when I drive past anyone camping outside of stores. I mean, they gotta have homes right? I have just never caught the bug to drive our economy and encourage violence in a flurry of sales.
That being said—I can get behind shopping from my bed. Even better is when I don’t have some sales guy giving me his pitch and rushing me in my selection, or when I can evaluate reviews and comments. That’s why the Cyber Monday trend, and even better Cyber Week, make sense. 1) There’s less violence; 2) You can shop in your pajama pants 3) I actually can evaluate if a sale is a sale.
So let me help you get a bit into my world and share exactly how to fully enjoy this Cyber Week.
1. You don’t go to the grocery store while you’re hungry, so you shouldn’t online shop when you’re in dire need.
This means think ahead and buy gadgets that will make you more effective or improve on what you already have. Sales are great, but you don’t have time to evaluate is there is a pressing problem to solve. Instead look into bargains that will help to streamline your backup process, provide off-site storage for your backups, or try out a new software that you didn’t think would be possible before.
2. The Internet is amazing because it is a community. Use it!
Ok, you’ve thought about what would be nice to improve your productivity or remembered that to do list which never got done. Great, now see what people on the web say. Read a bit on the company’s website, see what other people are saying. Don’t just fall in love with something because it is 30% off. Do a quick two-step and hear what the talk on the Interwebs may be. There may just be a new model coming out for Christmas.
3. A sale may not be the best Bell at the Ball.
Just because there is a sale for some product, doesn’t mean it is the cheapest. Take a look around, there may be a non-name brand product which is equal if not better in quality and for less! Here are a few sites that may be good for what you’re looking for.
- Newegg, cheap computer components
- Monoprice, cheap cables and networking items
- Nextag, view price histories of various products
- Amazon, it’s got anything and everything, but may be worth the time
- The Wirecutter, readable guides and clear-cut picks for the best of different product categories
4. And last but not least—learn something new
Don’t just browse, but read up on the products and companies selling those products. There may be something out there that will surprise you and even if you weren’t currently thinking about testing it out—especially if it wasn’t on sale—it may be the ideal solution to put you and your company a level above the rest. Be ready to be surprised, but dig a bit deeper to find that diamond in the rough.
Now get going! Your Cyber Week is coming to a close and there’s still so much to see and try. Here’s just a few products that I’ve been thinking about testing as I cruise the Cyber Week rebates from my bed!
Backup for my PC
About Acronis
A Swiss company founded in Singapore in 2003, Acronis has 15 offices worldwide and employees in 50+ countries. Acronis Cyber Protect Cloud is available in 26 languages in 150 countries and is used by over 20,000 service providers to protect over 750,000 businesses.
