Black Friday is the day after Thanksgiving, and this year’s shopping holiday is November 26. But you can already find Black Friday specials from several retailers, and these discounts will begin in the next few weeks.

When you browse through promotions and headlines about supply chain issues and shortages, your goal is to shop strategically. Here are some product categories that are worth buying on Black Friday, as well as those that you'd better skip until they go on sale in a few months.

Black Friday usually means major sales of electronic products, and this year is no exception. Wal-Mart, Best Buy, Amazon, Costco and Target all announced sales of various types of laptops this month.

At Costco, Dell, Lenovo, HP, LG, Samsung and MSI laptops will have discounts, depending on when and how you shop. (Costco's promotions are shocking, and some can only be purchased online.)

Of course, you may find some cheap bedding on Black Friday, but if you can, stick to it until January. At that time, many retailers would discount bedroom and bathroom products, such as bed sheets, pillows, towels and sheets.

Towards the end of the year, please pay attention to the upcoming bedding and other furniture promotions. You can find deals at Pottery Barn, Overstock, West Elm, Macy's, Crate & Barrel and Wayfair.

As usual, you will notice a sharp drop in TV prices on Black Friday and the weeks leading up to it. For example, Wal-Mart will provide a Samsung 60-inch 4K smart TV with HDR at a price of $548 from November 10th. It is expected that Amazon, Costco, Best Buy, Target and other TV brands will also have discounts.

DataWeave, a retail data and pricing analysis company, tracks the prices of more than 200 TVs sold by Amazon, Target, and Walmart. The company's CEO Karthik Bettadapura said that the TV prices they tracked rose by 7.4% between April and October this year.

Therefore, given that the base price of many TVs may have risen, these Black Friday price cuts may not be as large as they seem. But it is undeniable that retailers will offer some of the biggest TV discounts during Black Friday, so if you are in the market, you may want to take advantage of them anyway.

Retailers can usually charge higher fees for products that are in the current season (and in demand), and lower fees for products that are not in the current season. Winter clothing such as coats and jackets are in season as they are now, so you may not find the biggest discount this year.

If you can wait a few months, look for cold weather equipment on the clearance rack when we enter the spring. At that time, retailers may be eager to sell off-season inventory at discounted prices.

If you can't postpone it to 2022, you may still find plenty of discounts on coats and other comfortable gear at Macy's, Amazon, Kohl's, and other stores this month.

Hurry up and buy holiday essentials. Between supply chain disruptions and potential shortages, it may take longer than usual for products to reach you. For example, you may find that the item you want is out of stock, or the delivery time is extended.

So if you need something before the December holiday and it is in stock, pick it up. "There is no good reason to wait," said Eric Anderson, chair of the retail department and professor of marketing at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management in Evanston, Illinois.

In addition, many retailers are already promoting Black Friday deals, so there is no need to wait to find bargains.

Avoid scams. In all the excitement of getting a Black Friday deal, also be cautious. When you see an ad in a social media feed, do some digging before providing the information.

For example, if you see the perfect sweater ad on Instagram, check the seller’s website. Be wary of websites that don’t seem to be trustworthy, and websites that don’t display products other than the ones that are advertised to you. If you can't find the retailer's physical address online, or if the site only accepts payment through gift cards or peer-to-peer payment companies (such as Venmo or Cash App), you may be looking for a scammer.

Although there may be shortages and even scams on Black Friday this year, you may stay vigilant and shop early.

Laura McMullen writes for NerdWallet. Email: lmcmullen@nerdwallet.com. Twitter: @lauraemcmullen.

The article What to buy (and skip) on Black Friday 2021 first appeared on NerdWallet.

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