With exactly one week until Black Friday, shoppers are trying to get a jump on their holiday shopping and hitting the stores this weekend.

According to the NPD Group, nearly a quarter of shoppers will be out and about looking for name-brand products at discount prices.

Outlets are so popular because their prices are often similar to brand stores on sale - about 25 percent less.

When outlet goods go on sale, those prices will be the lowest a shopper can get, according to the NPD Group.

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Shopper Mary Jane Lindquist said that consumers should be prepared when shopping at outlet stores, though.

"Know what the prices are," Lindquist said, while shopping at the Tanger Outlets in Deer Park, New York. "So when you come to the outlets, you know if you are getting a deal or not."

Here are three additional tips to remember before heading to the outlet mall.

1. Know what you're buying. The NPD Group said that 85 percent of the merchandise at outlet stores was made specifically for those outlets.

At Brooks Brothers Factory Store in Deer Park, New York, district manager Anne Alcocer told ABC News that the quality in a Brooks Brothers store versus a factory store was similar.

"Anything with a 346 label is going to be produced for the factory stores. … [But] the fabrications will often be very similar, the color stories and the trends," she said.

2. Outlets are not just for clothes. At the Bose Factory Store in Deer Park, refurbished versions of the same electronics were available at a discount.

3. Double up on discounts. Use the outlet center's coupon books or smartphone app, which will help you spot the sales. But in some cases, consumers can also skip the trip to the outlet stores altogether and simply visit them online.

ABC News' Rebecca Jarvis and Matt German contributed to this story.