Holiday shopping hoopla: Black Friday bargain secrets

Coupons! Catalogs! Deals! All the holiday shopping offers can be overwhelming.

Many of you probably check with friends and family to see what bargains are the best. Now, thanks to the Help Me Hank Holiday Shopping Hoopla event, you can check with thousands of people for help in finding the biggest savings.

"I think shopping has changed a lot because there are so many options now to get your information," said Melissa Buckles, a bargain expert from the website EveryDaySavvy.com.

There's no question shoppers have access to plenty of information, and Help Me Hank is giving you yet another option. Hank's Holiday Helpers are nine bargain-hunting women who run websites or blogs, and have spent years tracking the best deals in Metro-Detroit. Each year, the do some of the work for you, scanning online offers, looking at coupons, and heading to the stores to look for deals. They share that information on Twitter and ClickOnDetroit.com.

In 2014, the hi-tech shopping helpers reached 380,000 accounts on Twitter alone, according to Emily Hay of HayThereSocialMedia.

This year they will be using #HelpMeHank on Twitter and Instagram to share all their Black Friday insider information.

Hay said her team gets the ball rolling, and other shoppers join un with all kinds of shopping information.

"What deals are you finding, where to avoid, what to do on Cyber Monday, so it's still the hub of the whole shopping frenzy," Hay said.  

"The last couple of years shoppers have been really generous about giving tips and telling you who's in line and if it's crowded," said Lauren Weber of the blog Mrs. Weber's Neighborhood.

Getting Retailers' Attention

It's not just fellow shoppers that use #HelpMeHank. Businesses also use Twitter and other social media to reach out to customer with special offers and to answer any criticism.

"I was most surprised at the interaction between companies and shoppers on social media," said Jolyn Felten of BargainsToBounty.com.

In previous years, we noticed retailers responding to complaints about long lines and other issues. Using social media is a good way to get a retailer's attention. The stores watch social media and are very sensitive to bad publicity, especially during the busiest shopping season of the year.

Emily Hay of HayThereSocialMedia says she's seeing more and more small business jumping on the social media bandwagon as well. "A lot of it is just consumers are used to turning to their phone for big deals. So, what business owner doesn't want to be on the radar."

How To Get Plugged In

We invite shoppers and businesses to join the Holiday Shopping Hoopla and make the holiday weekend an amazing experience here in Metro-Detroit.

In order to get connected, be sure to follow #HelpMeHank on Twitter and Instagram. 

You can find all the deals and steals and share your tips and tricks with Hank's Holiday Helpers by tweeting #HelpMeHank with all of your Black Friday tweets this season.Â