Fake promotions, phantom stocks: 3 Black Friday pitfalls that I spot at a glance (and how to avoid them)

Black Friday has become a jungle. If real promotions exist (and fortunately!), they are drowned out in the middle of misleading offers designed to trigger an impulsive purchase. By tracking prices on a daily basis to The DigitalsI learned to identify warning signs invisible to the general public. Here are the three most common traps buyers fall into, and how to protect yourself from them in seconds.

1. The trap of the invisible “Marketplace”

This is the most common error. You are on a trusted site (Fnac, Darty, Cdiscount or Amazon), you see an iPhone or a games console at an unbeatable price. You buy with your eyes closed, thinking you are protected by the brand. The problem is that you are not buying from the brand, but from a third-party seller based on the other side of the world via the “Marketplace”. The risks are multiple: a product imported with an incompatible charger or an ineffective guarantee in France, delivery times of 3 weeks, or unpaid VAT that the customs officer will demand from you on arrival.

The tip to remember: always look at the small line under the “Add to cart” button. If it says “Sold and shipped by [Nom de l’Enseigne]”: go ahead!. If it says “Sold by XuLiTech and shipped by [Nom de l’Enseigne]”: avoid! The stock is in France, but after-sales service can be complicated. If it says “Sold and shipped by XuLiTech”: avoid, unless the seller has thousands of recent positive reviews.

2. The old model scam

Retailers are taking advantage of Black Friday to empty their stocks of obsolete products. They display a TV or laptop with a -50% discount. The price seems incredible for a “4K TV” or a “Core i7 PC”. This means that the components are 3 or 4 years old. In tech, a 2020 laptop PC sold new today, even at -50%, is often less efficient than an entry-level model from 2024 at full price. You’re not buying a deal, you’re helping the store take inventory.

The tip to remember: don’t stop at the generic name (eg: “MacBook Air”) but look for the year of release or the name of the chip (M1, M2, M3). For TVs, a simple tip: copy the model reference into Google: if the first tests of the product date from 2021, move on. A “real” Black Friday promotion must concern a product released in the last 12 to 18 months.

3. False urgency

“Only 2 items left in stock!”, “15 people are viewing this item”, “Offer expires in 04:59 minutes”. These messages are often generated by plugins automatic to create a feeling of panic (FOMO – Fear Of Missing Out). On some unscrupulous sites, the counter restarts even if you refresh the page. The goal is to make you skip the price comparison step.

The tip to remember: keep a cool head. If an offer is truly exceptional on a large site (Amazon, Boulanger), it will go quickly, it’s true. But never give in to the pressure of a countdown on a site you know little about. Always take 2 minutes to check the price on another site. If the price difference is minimal, always favor the security of a known site, even for €5 more.

In summary: The “3 V” rule

Before taking out your credit card this Friday, apply my 3 V rule:

• Seller: Is this the official website or an unknown third party?
• Obsolete: Is the product recent or is it old stuff in disguise?
• Check: Have I compared the price elsewhere?

If you follow these three points, you will be among the winners of Black Friday, not the victims.