While scepticism surrounding the Black Friday weekend has been growing this year from shoppers and retailers alike, that’s no reason not to take advantage of the plethora of deals available.

Follow these five tips to make sure that you make the most of this cut-price retail carnival:

1. Shop online

A recent study showed that 65% of shoppers in the UK who plan on taking part in Black Friday in 2015 will be doing so online.

Not only will you be getting some of the best deals, but shopping online also has the added benefit of allowing you to avoid the riotous scums in store that got so bad last year that police have now issued safety warnings to stores nationwide.

Avoid this ((c) Luke MacGregor/Reuters)

2. Discounted doesn’t always mean worth it

The carnival of deals on Black Friday is certainly exciting but it’s important to remember not to go overboard.

Think before you buy anything – is the big, red 50% off tag the only reason you’re planning on spending your money then maybe think twice.

Often the best discounts will be on older products – flash sales like this are great ways for retailers to get rid of old stock, and while this doesn’t mean they’re not worth it, you should be wary and make sure that you know what you’re buying.

3. Don’t just wait for Friday

As the years have gone on, Black Friday discounts have become less and less concentrated around the day itself; Amazon, for example, have been offering deals all week and will continue to do so up until Cyber Monday and, quite possibly, into next week as well.

Don’t wait until the 27th November to buy whatever it is you’re after, and don’t get upset if you miss out on the day – you’ll still be able to get great deals afterwards.

Depending on how urgently you want to buy your chosen product(s), you can always wait until after Christmas, when January sales will start, offering some of the best deals of the whole shopping year.

Brace yourselves…

4. Keep an eye on social media

Many retailers will announce their deals on their various accounts on Twitter and Facebook in the run up to Black Friday (and Cyber Monday) so keep an eye out.

You should also sign up to the various retailers’ newsletters if you really want to make sure that you take advantage of the best deals around.

5. Be prepared!

Perhaps the best piece of advice we can give is: do your research!

This applies in two ways:

First, make sure you find out as much as you can about the products that you’re after so that you know exactly what you’re buying.

And second, scour the market – make sure that you are getting the absolute best discounts available. There are countless shops, both on and offline, taking part in Black Friday, so whenever you find one deal, look around some more and the chances are, you’ll find a better one elsewhere.

Be prepared!

And with that, all that remains is for you to go out (or rather log on), open your wallet (albeit cautiously) and buy yourself some discounted goods!