Book Review: How to be a Blagger by Mike Essex

Book Review: How to be a Blagger (2^nd Edition) by Mike Essex

I first came across Mike Essex when I stumbled onto his blog and then read his first book, Free Stuff Everyday. You can my review of his first book here. Recently, he has recently released a second follow up book called “How to be a Blagger”.

Book Review: How to be a Blagger (2^nd Edition) by Mike Essex

I first came across Mike Essex when I stumbled onto his blog and then read his first book, Free Stuff Everyday. You can my review of his first book here. Recently, he has recently released a second follow up book called “How to be a Blagger”.

Prior to reading his second book, I wasn’t too sure at the time what exactly a blagger was, however I thought it sounded rather neat. More importantly, I was rather keen to read Mike’s second book because his first book had been a little gem into the world of how to score freebies. I found out that it’s just like any other trade – that you need to master and to hone to get good at, and who better to learn from than Mike Essex who is willing to share many of the lessons that he has learnt along the way.

Mike’s got a fantastic sense of humour. As well as providing very useful insights into the world of blagging, he leaves you smiling, and at times chuckling at his sense of humour. I had hilarious fits and laughed out loud when I got to the bit in his book about the stickman deciding to fart, and another section in his book where he pushed his limits with hair removal strips. Ouch! Don’t ask – you will have to read the book to find out for yourself what trials and tribulations Mike went through to score his many and varied freebies.

What is a blagger?

So what exactly is a blagger and what is blagging? This book teaches the basics and process of how to score free stuff, a term referred to as blagging. Once you have finished reading this book you will be all set to start applying some of the strategies that Mike teaches and to become a budding blagger.

What important lessons can you learn from this book?

Though the stories that Mike recounts as he worked his way to meet his goal of scoring 100 freebies are entertaining and at times funny, Mike conveys some important lessons to take heed of. These important lessons are summed up in one word – strategy. What is your compelling strategy that would entice companies to give you a free product to review?

Mike touches on some important points such as developing a persona, preferably one that you are comfortable with, or quickly get comfortable with, especially if visiting Trade Fairs.  The persona that Mike took on is the “Freebieman”. I think of it as Mike’s equivalent of being Superman. In my thoughts, it conjures up a bigger than life image of “Freebieman” taking to the sky, or rather taking to the big, bad commercial world of businesses to snare those illusive freebies. And Mike did just that and more, scoring interviews with major tv stations along the way, and even scoring freebies for others to show how it is done. “Freebieman” is no wimp, and he is always up for the challenge.

Another important aspect to your strategy is to decide on what your unique offer is. In the latter part of his book, Mike provides many more valuable lessons into the world of scoring freebies, which only an experienced blagger could share with such great detail.

Who would this book appeal to?

If you have thought about wanting to score freebies, but are unsure about what the process entails, then Mike’s book will point you in the right direction.

What didn’t I like about this book?

There wasn’t anything glaring about this book that I didn’t like. However, I would like to point out that if you are making the decision between buying both books, then Mike’s first book “Free Stuff Everyday” will provide the foundational information for getting free stuff. His second book again provides valuable information and strategies, as well as being an entertaining read.

You can read uncut about the stuff ups that he made along the way, and about the what’s and how’s of what he did to score freebies. The book also provides many examples of reviews that he wrote. So if you are just starting out and don’t exactly know how to write reviews, Mike gives plenty of examples to read and learn from.

In summary, Mike Essex is the man if you want to learn from a pro blagman. He has written well over 400 reviews, with his freebies valued in excess of  8000 pounds. That’s quite a record. Grab a copy of How to be a Blagger to get invaluable advice on How to Be a Blagger.