Research from retail analysts Circana shows shoppers are three times more likely to make impulse purchases in person than online. " (Stores) are very hungry for Black Friday to do well," said Marshal Cohen, chief retail advisor at Circana.

Some experts have predicted Black Friday may become a thing of the past as early sales and e-commerce take over current shopping trends.

If history is any guide and advertisers are to be believed, the best bargains still are to be had from Black Friday through Cyber Monday, a four-day period known in the retail world as BFCM for short.