how to do research for a persuasive essay

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10 effective techniques to master persuasive essay writing and convince any audience.

As a skilled communicator, your ability to persuade others is crucial in many areas of life. Whether you’re presenting an argument, advocating for a cause, or simply trying to convince someone of your point of view, your persuasive essay can be a powerful tool. However, crafting an essay that truly convinces your reader requires more than just strong opinions and eloquent language. It requires a strategic approach that combines logical reasoning, emotional appeal, and effective writing techniques.

1. Craft a Compelling Introduction: Your introduction is the first impression you make on your reader, so it’s essential to capture their attention right from the start. Consider using a captivating anecdote, a thought-provoking question, or a shocking statistic to engage your audience and set the tone for your essay. By immediately grabbing their interest, you increase the chances that they’ll continue reading and be open to your persuasive arguments.

2. Clearly Define Your Position: Before launching into the main body of your essay, make sure to clearly state your position on the topic. This will help your reader understand your stance and follow your line of reasoning throughout the essay. Use concise and assertive language to communicate your position, and consider reinforcing it with strong evidence or expert opinions that support your viewpoint.

3. Appeal to Emotions: While rational arguments are important, emotions often play a significant role in persuasive writing. Connect with your reader on an emotional level by using vivid descriptions, personal anecdotes, or powerful metaphors. By eliciting an emotional response, you can create a deeper connection with your audience and make your arguments more compelling.

Choose a compelling topic that ignites your passion

When crafting a persuasive essay, it is crucial to select a topic that not only captivates and engages your readers but also resonates strongly with you. By choosing a compelling topic that ignites your passion, you will be able to infuse enthusiasm and conviction into your writing, making it more convincing and persuasive.

While it may be tempting to select a popular or trending topic, it is essential to choose something that you deeply care about and have a genuine interest in. Your passion for the subject matter will shine through in your writing, capturing the attention and interest of your readers.

• Explore your hobbies and personal interests.
• Reflect on societal issues that deeply affect you.
• Consider topics that challenge conventional thinking.
• Analyze current events and their impact on your community or society as a whole.
• Look for subjects that inspire debate and differing opinions.
• Examine topics that align with your values and beliefs.

By choosing a topic that you are not only knowledgeable about but also passionate about, you will have a stronger emotional connection to your writing. This emotional connection will allow you to effectively convey your argument, influence your readers’ perspectives, and ultimately convince them to see things from your point of view.

Remember, the key to writing a persuasive essay lies in your ability to convey your ideas convincingly. By selecting a compelling topic that ignites your passion, you will have a solid foundation for crafting a persuasive essay that will resonate with readers and leave a lasting impact. So, take the time to explore your interests and choose a topic that truly captivates you.

Conduct thorough research to gather supporting evidence

Gathering strong evidence is a vital step in writing a persuasive essay. Convincing your readers requires you to present compelling facts, statistics, expert opinions, and examples that support your arguments. To achieve this, it is crucial to conduct thorough research to collect relevant and reliable information.

Begin by determining the main points you want to convey in your essay. These points should align with your thesis statement and support your overall argument. Once you have a clear idea of what you are trying to communicate, start gathering supporting evidence.

Research various credible sources such as academic journals, books, reputable websites, and expert interviews. Look for information that directly relates to your topic and can be used to reinforce your arguments. Be sure to verify the credibility and reliability of your sources to ensure the accuracy of the information.

Take notes as you conduct your research, highlighting key points, supporting evidence, and any quotes or statistics that you may want to include in your essay. It is essential to organize your findings in a way that makes sense and flows logically in your essay.

When using statistics or data, make sure to cite the sources properly to give credit to the original authors and establish your credibility as a writer. This will also allow your readers to verify the information themselves if they wish to do so.

By conducting thorough research and gathering strong supporting evidence, you will be able to present a persuasive and well-supported argument in your essay. This will not only convince your readers but also showcase your knowledge, understanding, and dedication to the topic at hand.

Develop a clear and concise thesis statement

One of the most important aspects of writing a persuasive essay is developing a thesis statement that is clear, concise, and compelling. A thesis statement serves as the main argument or central idea of your essay. It sets the tone for the entire piece and helps to guide your reader through your argument.

When developing your thesis statement, it’s essential to choose a strong and persuasive statement that clearly states your position on the topic. Avoid vague or ambiguous language that can confuse your reader and weaken your argument. Instead, use strong and specific language that clearly conveys your main point.

Your thesis statement should be concise, meaning it should be expressed in a clear and straightforward manner. Avoid unnecessary words or phrases that can dilute your message and make it less powerful. Instead, focus on getting your point across in as few words as possible while still maintaining clarity and impact.

Additionally, your thesis statement should be compelling and persuasive. It should motivate your reader to continue reading and consider your argument. Use persuasive language and strong evidence to support your thesis statement and convince your reader of its validity.

In summary, developing a clear and concise thesis statement is crucial for writing a persuasive essay. Choose a strong statement that clearly conveys your position, use concise language to express your point, and make your statement compelling and persuasive. By doing so, you will create a strong foundation for your entire essay and increase your chances of convincing your reader.

Use persuasive language and rhetorical devices

When it comes to crafting a compelling persuasive essay, one must master the art of persuasive language and employ various rhetorical devices. The way you choose your words and structure your sentences can make all the difference in captivating and convincing your readers.

One effective technique is to use strong and powerful language that evokes emotion and creates a sense of urgency. The use of vivid and descriptive words can paint a picture in the minds of your readers, making your arguments more relatable and engaging.

Additionally, employing rhetorical devices such as metaphors, similes, and analogies can effectively convey your message and help your readers understand complex ideas. By drawing comparisons and creating associations, you can make abstract concepts more tangible and easier to grasp.

Another valuable device is repetition. By repeating key phrases or ideas throughout your essay, you can emphasize your points and reinforce your arguments. This technique can help make your arguments more memorable and leave a lasting impact on your readers.

Furthermore, using rhetorical questions can encourage your readers to think critically about your topic and consider your perspective. By posing thought-provoking questions, you can guide your readers towards your desired conclusions and make them actively engage with your essay.

Lastly, employing the use of anecdotes and personal stories can make your essay more relatable and establish a connection with your readers. By sharing real-life examples or experiences, you can offer concrete evidence to support your arguments and establish credibility.

In conclusion, mastering persuasive language and employing rhetorical devices can greatly enhance the effectiveness of your persuasive essay. By choosing your words carefully, using powerful language, and incorporating various rhetorical techniques, you can captivate your readers and present your arguments in a compelling and convincing manner.

Address counterarguments and refute them with strong evidence

When writing a persuasive essay, it is crucial to anticipate and address potential counterarguments to strengthen your argument. By acknowledging opposing viewpoints and then refuting them with strong evidence, you can demonstrate the credibility and validity of your own position.

One effective way to address counterarguments is to acknowledge them upfront and present them in an objective and unbiased manner. By doing so, you show that you have considered different perspectives and are willing to engage in a fair and balanced discussion. This approach also helps you connect with readers who may initially hold opposing views, as it shows respect for their opinions and demonstrates your willingness to engage in thoughtful debate.

To effectively refute counterarguments, it is important to use strong evidence that supports your own position. This can include data, statistics, expert opinions, research findings, and real-life examples. By providing convincing evidence, you can demonstrate the superiority of your argument and weaken the credibility of counterarguments. Be sure to cite credible sources and use persuasive language to present your evidence in a convincing way.

In addition to providing strong evidence, it is also important to anticipate and address potential weaknesses in your own argument. By acknowledging and addressing these weaknesses, you can show that you have thoroughly considered your stance and are able to respond to potential criticisms. This helps to build trust and credibility with your readers, as they can see that you are aware of the limitations of your argument and have taken steps to address them.

In conclusion, addressing counterarguments and refuting them with strong evidence is a crucial component of persuasive writing. By acknowledging opposing viewpoints and providing solid evidence to support your own position, you can strengthen your argument and convince readers to adopt your point of view. Remember to always approach counterarguments objectively, use persuasive language, and address any potential weaknesses in your own argument. By doing so, you can create a compelling and persuasive essay that will resonate with your readers.

Edit and proofread your essay for grammar and clarity

Once you’ve completed your persuasive essay, the work isn’t quite finished. It’s essential to go back and review your writing with a critical eye, focusing on grammar and clarity. This final step is crucial in ensuring that your arguments are effectively communicated and that your reader can easily understand and follow your points.

First and foremost, pay attention to grammar. Look for any errors in your sentence structure, verb tense, subject-verb agreement, and punctuation. Make sure that your sentences are clear and concise, without any unnecessary or confusing phrases. Correct any spelling mistakes or typos that may have slipped through the cracks.

Next, consider the overall clarity of your essay. Read through each paragraph and ensure that your ideas flow logically and cohesively. Are your arguments supported by evidence and examples? Are your transitions smooth and seamless? If necessary, revise or rearrange your paragraphs to strengthen the overall structure of your essay.

It’s also important to check for any ambiguous or vague language. Make sure that your words and phrases have precise meanings and can be easily understood by your reader. Consider whether there are any areas where you could provide more clarification or add further details to strengthen your points.

When editing and proofreading, it can be helpful to read your essay out loud. This can help you identify any awkward or convoluted sentences, as well as any areas where you may have used repetitive or redundant language. Reading aloud also allows you to hear the natural rhythm and flow of your writing, giving you a better sense of how your words will be perceived by the reader.

Finally, consider seeking feedback from others. Share your essay with a trusted friend, family member, or teacher and ask for their input. They may be able to offer valuable suggestions or catch any errors that you may have missed. Sometimes, a fresh set of eyes can provide a new perspective and help you improve your essay even further.

By taking the time to edit and proofread your essay for grammar and clarity, you can ensure that your persuasive arguments are presented in the most effective and compelling way possible. This attention to detail will not only demonstrate your strong writing skills, but it will also increase the chances of convincing your reader to see things from your perspective.

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How to Write a Persuasive Essay: Tips and Tricks

By Allison Bressmer

Most composition classes you’ll take will teach the art of persuasive writing. That’s a good thing.

Knowing where you stand on issues and knowing how to argue for or against something is a skill that will serve you well both inside and outside of the classroom.

Persuasion is the art of using logic to prompt audiences to change their mind or take action , and is generally seen as accomplishing that goal by appealing to emotions and feelings.

A persuasive essay is one that attempts to get a reader to agree with your perspective.

Ready for some tips on how to produce a well-written, well-rounded, well-structured persuasive essay? Just say yes. I don’t want to have to write another essay to convince you!

How Do I Write a Persuasive Essay?

What are some good topics for a persuasive essay, how do i identify an audience for my persuasive essay, how do you create an effective persuasive essay, how should i edit my persuasive essay.

Your persuasive essay needs to have the three components required of any essay: the introduction , body , and conclusion .

That is essay structure. However, there is flexibility in that structure.

There is no rule (unless the assignment has specific rules) for how many paragraphs any of those sections need.

Although the components should be proportional; the body paragraphs will comprise most of your persuasive essay.

How Do I Start a Persuasive Essay?

As with any essay introduction, this paragraph is where you grab your audience’s attention, provide context for the topic of discussion, and present your thesis statement.

TIP 1: Some writers find it easier to write their introductions last. As long as you have your working thesis, this is a perfectly acceptable approach. From that thesis, you can plan your body paragraphs and then go back and write your introduction.

TIP 2: Avoid “announcing” your thesis. Don’t include statements like this:

• “In my essay I will show why extinct animals should (not) be regenerated.”
• “The purpose of my essay is to argue that extinct animals should (not) be regenerated.”

Announcements take away from the originality, authority, and sophistication of your writing.

Instead, write a convincing thesis statement that answers the question "so what?" Why is the topic important, what do you think about it, and why do you think that? Be specific.

How Many Paragraphs Should a Persuasive Essay Have?

This body of your persuasive essay is the section in which you develop the arguments that support your thesis. Consider these questions as you plan this section of your essay:

• What arguments support your thesis?
• What is the best order for your arguments?
• What evidence do you have?
• Will you address the opposing argument to your own?
• How can you conclude convincingly?

TIP: Brainstorm and do your research before you decide which arguments you’ll focus on in your discussion. Make a list of possibilities and go with the ones that are strongest, that you can discuss with the most confidence, and that help you balance your rhetorical triangle .

What Should I Put in the Conclusion of a Persuasive Essay?

The conclusion is your “mic-drop” moment. Think about how you can leave your audience with a strong final comment.

And while a conclusion often re-emphasizes the main points of a discussion, it shouldn’t simply repeat them.

TIP 1: Be careful not to introduce a new argument in the conclusion—there’s no time to develop it now that you’ve reached the end of your discussion!

TIP 2 : As with your thesis, avoid announcing your conclusion. Don’t start your conclusion with “in conclusion” or “to conclude” or “to end my essay” type statements. Your audience should be able to see that you are bringing the discussion to a close without those overused, less sophisticated signals.

If your instructor has assigned you a topic, then you’ve already got your issue; you’ll just have to determine where you stand on the issue. Where you stand on your topic is your position on that topic.

Your position will ultimately become the thesis of your persuasive essay: the statement the rest of the essay argues for and supports, intending to convince your audience to consider your point of view.

If you have to choose your own topic, use these guidelines to help you make your selection:

• Choose an issue you truly care about
• Choose an issue that is actually debatable

Simple “tastes” (likes and dislikes) can’t really be argued. No matter how many ways someone tries to convince me that milk chocolate rules, I just won’t agree.

It’s dark chocolate or nothing as far as my tastes are concerned.

Similarly, you can’t convince a person to “like” one film more than another in an essay.

You could argue that one movie has superior qualities than another: cinematography, acting, directing, etc. but you can’t convince a person that the film really appeals to them.

Once you’ve selected your issue, determine your position just as you would for an assigned topic. That position will ultimately become your thesis.

Until you’ve finalized your work, consider your thesis a “working thesis.”

This means that your statement represents your position, but you might change its phrasing or structure for that final version.

When you’re writing an essay for a class, it can seem strange to identify an audience—isn’t the audience the instructor?

Your instructor will read and evaluate your essay, and may be part of your greater audience, but you shouldn’t just write for your teacher.

Think about who your intended audience is.

For an argument essay, think of your audience as the people who disagree with you—the people who need convincing.

That population could be quite broad, for example, if you’re arguing a political issue, or narrow, if you’re trying to convince your parents to extend your curfew.

Once you’ve got a sense of your audience, it’s time to consult with Aristotle. Aristotle’s teaching on persuasion has shaped communication since about 330 BC. Apparently, it works.

Aristotle taught that in order to convince an audience of something, the communicator needs to balance the three elements of the rhetorical triangle to achieve the best results.

Those three elements are ethos , logos , and pathos .

Ethos relates to credibility and trustworthiness. How can you, as the writer, demonstrate your credibility as a source of information to your audience?

How will you show them you are worthy of their trust?

• You show you’ve done your research: you understand the issue, both sides
• You show respect for the opposing side: if you disrespect your audience, they won’t respect you or your ideas

Logos relates to logic. How will you convince your audience that your arguments and ideas are reasonable?

You provide facts or other supporting evidence to support your claims.

That evidence may take the form of studies or expert input or reasonable examples or a combination of all of those things, depending on the specific requirements of your assignment.

Remember: if you use someone else’s ideas or words in your essay, you need to give them credit.

ProWritingAid's Plagiarism Checker checks your work against over a billion web-pages, published works, and academic papers so you can be sure of its originality.

Find out more about ProWritingAid’s Plagiarism checks.

Pathos relates to emotion. Audiences are people and people are emotional beings. We respond to emotional prompts. How will you engage your audience with your arguments on an emotional level?

• You make strategic word choices : words have denotations (dictionary meanings) and also connotations, or emotional values. Use words whose connotations will help prompt the feelings you want your audience to experience.
• You use emotionally engaging examples to support your claims or make a point, prompting your audience to be moved by your discussion.

Be mindful as you lean into elements of the triangle. Too much pathos and your audience might end up feeling manipulated, roll their eyes and move on.

An “all logos” approach will leave your essay dry and without a sense of voice; it will probably bore your audience rather than make them care.

Once you’ve got your essay planned, start writing! Don’t worry about perfection, just get your ideas out of your head and off your list and into a rough essay format.

After you’ve written your draft, evaluate your work. What works and what doesn’t? For help with evaluating and revising your work, check out this ProWritingAid post on manuscript revision .

After you’ve evaluated your draft, revise it. Repeat that process as many times as you need to make your work the best it can be.

When you’re satisfied with the content and structure of the essay, take it through the editing process .

Grammatical or sentence-level errors can distract your audience or even detract from the ethos—the authority—of your work.

You don’t have to edit alone! ProWritingAid’s Realtime Report will find errors and make suggestions for improvements.

You can even use it on emails to your professors:

Try ProWritingAid with a free account.

How Can I Improve My Persuasion Skills?

You can develop your powers of persuasion every day just by observing what’s around you.

• How is that advertisement working to convince you to buy a product?
• How is a political candidate arguing for you to vote for them?
• How do you “argue” with friends about what to do over the weekend, or convince your boss to give you a raise?
• How are your parents working to convince you to follow a certain academic or career path?

As you observe these arguments in action, evaluate them. Why are they effective or why do they fail?

How could an argument be strengthened with more (or less) emphasis on ethos, logos, and pathos?

Every argument is an opportunity to learn! Observe them, evaluate them, and use them to perfect your own powers of persuasion.

Be confident about grammar

Check every email, essay, or story for grammar mistakes. Fix them before you press send.

Allison Bressmer

Allison Bressmer is a professor of freshman composition and critical reading at a community college and a freelance writer. If she isn’t writing or teaching, you’ll likely find her reading a book or listening to a podcast while happily sipping a semi-sweet iced tea or happy-houring with friends. She lives in New York with her family. Connect at linkedin.com/in/allisonbressmer.

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How to Write a Persuasive Essay

by Guest Blogger | 0 comments

Start Your Story TODAY! We’re teaching a new LIVE workshop this week to help you start your next book. Learn more and sign up here.

So you've been assigned a persuasive paper and you're staring at a blinking cursor. What do you do first? How do you pick a good topic? Today we're going to learn how to write a persuasive essay, so you can get that assignment done. 

As we continue our back-to-school series on writing essays, today we look at the persuasive essay. 

Today's article is written by guest writer Cora Weems who is a senior at the University of South Carolina. She typically writes narrative poetry, slightly depressing short stories, and effective academic essays. Her hobbies include trying to get through a tall stack of unread books and handcrafts like card-making. Welcome, Cora! 

What is a Persuasive Essay?

A persuasive essay is a piece of writing that aims to convince the reader to adopt a specific viewpoint or take action. To support it, you'll use logical arguments, compelling evidence, emotional appeals, and personalization.

In school, teachers often assign controversial issues, but you can develop your own topic too.

Learning to write a persuasive essay though is terrific practice for all kinds of writing. From public debate to sales letters and marketing, persuasive writing skills can carry you far beyond your school experience.

Let's go through the full process!

How to Write a Persuasive Essay: 6 Steps to Help You Start

Here are six steps to help you get your essay started.

Step 1: Pick a Suitable Topic

Maybe your teacher's already given you a prompt, or a specific topic to follow. Or maybe they've sent you on your way with just the rubric and an example paper to help you with formatting.

When it comes to persuasive writing, you need a position that you develop into a central idea. You'll have to support that position with all your evidence and reasoning.

Ideally, it should be a topic you're already familiar with and interested in. That will give you a better starting position and help keep you motivated to keep researching and writing!

When you are given a topic, you'll still want to develop a debatable position.

Here are three examples of broad persuasive essay topics:

• The Impact of Social Media on Society
• Climate Change and Environmental Responsibility
• The Role of Education in Reducing Income Inequality

It should not be a topic that has a specific single right answer or solution, but rather, a number of positions and solutions that you can take.

Your topic should be one of the very first things you address in your essay, in the topic sentence of your introductory paragraph, so your reader can immediately know what you're writing about. 

To choose a suitable topic, ask yourself if the topic has multiple positions to take, and if you can reasonably research and take one position. That leads us to step 2:

Step 2: Research Both Sides, But Only Pick One

Even though you're only trying to advocate for one side of your argument, you should know the perspectives of both sides. Not only will this give you a better understanding of your topic, but it will help you prepare a counter argument that will make your essay more convincing. 

If you've chosen a controversial topic, then there should be at least two opposing viewpoints that you can read about for supporting evidence. 

Perhaps when you picked your topic, you already had a preferred stance, but researching the other side will give you fresh insight into what you actually believe, rather than relying on what you already knew. 

Strong arguments typically address the opposing side's perspective and acknowledge them, for the purpose of refuting that argument and making your own appear stronger.

Or maybe you think both sides of your argument have valid points, so you think you'll about both and let the reader decide. Don't do that!

Not only is it more work for you, but the reader will be confused about your point.

You can acknowledge the strongest parts of the opposing view while you counter with your own perspective.

Step 3: Craft a Thesis Statement

Writing a thesis statement is a skill that goes beyond just persuasive writing. It's particularly important in this case because it gives both you and the reader a clear vision on how the rest of your paper is going to go. 

You should explicitly state what you position is and what the rest of your paper is going to be about. It's usually a sentence or two long, so don't worry about being thorough or too specific. You'll Expand on it in your body paragraphs.

Typically, your thesis statement is located at the end of your introductory paragraph which allows for a natural transition from introducing your topic to the more specific reasons for your position on that topic. 

You can use this statement to outline the rest of your paper, from what each paragraph is going to addressing the type of evidence you'll be using.

For example, if you choose the topic about the impact of social media on society, you want a thesis statement that covers the position and scope of your paper. Here's an example: 

Social media like Facebook negatively impacts society through the ease of sharing misinformation, and both individuals and social media platforms need to do more to curb the spread of misinformation.

Notice how the position this writer takes is that Facebook negatively impacts society because of how it's used to share misinformation.

Now how would they support that thesis?

Step 4: Use the Right Evidence

Once you take a position, it's the time to show the reader why your viewpoint in particular is the one they should follow.

For academic writing, the most effective evidence is peer-reviewed articles published in academic journals. Peer-reviewed articles are seen as the most credible because they've been viewed and cleared by a number of different people, which means multiple people agreed that this article is reliable. 

If you chose the wrong evidence, your entire argument is at risk of falling apart. You should not be choosing evidence that is false or unreliable, because your evidence is the foundation that your position stands upon. 

Even if you don't want to go searching through databases for jargon-filled journal articles, all the evidence you choose should be from credible sources. It could be an expert opinion or some form of anecdotal evidence that could help personalize the issue for your reader. 

You may have heard the terms “ethos,” “pathos,” and “logos” in class. When crafting something persuasive, you should appeal to authority, emotion, and logic. 

Using evidence from an expert is an appeal to ethos or authority, credibility.

If you cite statistics from a reputable source, that might be an appeal to logic.

A related anecdote that makes the reader angry or sympathetic may be an emotional appeal.

The best persuasive essays use all three.

A persuasive argument is typically supported by a number of different sources that appeal to all parts of the reader, from their logical side to their more heartfelt one. All of those different perspectives will come together to make your argument stronger and more effective. 

For example, in our example above on the impact of social media, the thesis statement reads: “Social media like Facebook negatively impacts society through the ease of sharing misinformation, and both individuals and social media platforms need to do more to curb the spread of misinformation.”

To support, this paper would need to show data about misinformation on Facebook, demonstrate the ways that misinformation negatively impacts society, and then offer the best solutions in the form of individual and company interventions.

Step 5: Use Natural Transitions

As you add evidence to your argument, use transitions that help the reader see the connections you're making.

If you've ever felt your eyes begin to glaze over when you see a wall of text or a bunch of graphs and statistics in one place, the writer lost you in making the needed connections and transitions. You don't want to do that to your reader. 

Introduce a point, then use evidence to support that point, and then expand on that evidence. Whether it's by paraphrasing it so the reader can more easily digest it, or by showing the reader exactly how it connects back to what you're trying to persuade them. 

This not only applies to evidence, but also moving between paragraphs. There should be a topic sentence near the beginning of every paragraph to tell the reader what that paragraph is about, and you should use the last sentence of the previous paragraph to lead into it. 

Doing this helps improve the flow of your essay and keeps the reader's attention. If they never have to stop and wonder how you got to a certain point, then you can keep all their attention purely on your argument. 

Step 6: Make It Applicable

As you bring your essay to a close, most persuasive papers end with some call to action. It might be that you are asking the reader to understand an issue differently. Maybe you want to them to change their minds or donate money or take other action.

Make sure your conclusion answers the question, “So what?” Give your reader something to occupy their mind even after they're done reading. You want to tell them why reading your argument was important, and give them a reason to keep thinking about your argument even after you're done. 

Doing so will leave a lasting impression of your paper on your reader, which will make your essay more persuasive and effective. 

Persuade us!

So there you have it. Some ways to help move that blinking cursor.

It's okay to start with a draft that's just you cramming all your ideas onto a document. Don't worry about formal language yet. Reorganizing and rewriting that rough draft is part of what makes a good paper. 

Plus, writing it all out will let you see what you actually thought the most important parts were, and revision allows you to highlight those strong points and focus on what you think the reader should know. 

Here's a question to help you keep going even after you've finished the messy first draft: What makes this essay important to you?

Beyond the grade it will get in class, beyond how it will affect your GPA or academic standing, what about this essay is important? What about this will affect more people than just you?

Throughout your life, you'll constantly find times where you have to use persuasion. Maybe it won't be in essay format or presented in a Power Point, but finding ways to be persuasive is something that will help you in the rest of your life. 

So let's think of this essay as practice, and learn how to be as persuasive as we can. 

What are your best tips for persuasive writing? Share in the comments . 

Set your timer for fifteen minutes . Choose a persuasive topic that you can take a clear position on. Make a list of the reasons for your current view point. Then, do some research and read possible evidence both in support and in opposition to your view. Choose the strongest two to three pieces. 

If you still have time, craft a thesis statement that distills your argument, and begin writing the essay. While it will take you longer than fifteen minutes to write the essay, sometimes just getting started in fifteen minutes is enough to make a difference!

When finished, post your thesis and current direction in the Pro Practice Workshop , and leave feedback for a few other writers. 

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How to Write a Persuasive Essay (This Convinced My Professor!)

Table of contents

Meredith Sell

You can make your essay more persuasive by getting straight to the point.

In fact, that's exactly what we did here, and that's just the first tip of this guide. Throughout this guide, we share the steps needed to prove an argument and create a persuasive essay.

This AI tool helps you improve your essay > This AI tool helps you improve your essay >

Key takeaways: - Proven process to make any argument persuasive - 5-step process to structure arguments - How to use AI to formulate and optimize your essay

Why is being persuasive so difficult?

"Write an essay that persuades the reader of your opinion on a topic of your choice."

You might be staring at an assignment description just like this 👆from your professor. Your computer is open to a blank document, the cursor blinking impatiently. Do I even have opinions?

The persuasive essay can be one of the most intimidating academic papers to write: not only do you need to identify a narrow topic and research it, but you also have to come up with a position on that topic that you can back up with research while simultaneously addressing different viewpoints.

That’s a big ask. And let’s be real: most opinion pieces in major news publications don’t fulfill these requirements.

The upside? By researching and writing your own opinion, you can learn how to better formulate not only an argument but the actual positions you decide to hold. 

Here, we break down exactly how to write a persuasive essay. We’ll start by taking a step that’s key for every piece of writing—defining the terms.

What Is a Persuasive Essay?

A persuasive essay is exactly what it sounds like: an essay that persuades . Over the course of several paragraphs or pages, you’ll use researched facts and logic to convince the reader of your opinion on a particular topic and discredit opposing opinions.

While you’ll spend some time explaining the topic or issue in question, most of your essay will flesh out your viewpoint and the evidence that supports it.

The 5 Must-Have Steps of a Persuasive Essay

If you’re intimidated by the idea of writing an argument, use this list to break your process into manageable chunks. Tackle researching and writing one element at a time, and then revise your essay so that it flows smoothly and coherently with every component in the optimal place.

1. A topic or issue to argue

This is probably the hardest step. You need to identify a topic or issue that is narrow enough to cover in the length of your piece—and is also arguable from more than one position. Your topic must call for an opinion , and not be a simple fact .

It might be helpful to walk through this process:

• Identify a random topic
• Ask a question about the topic that involves a value claim or analysis to answer
• Answer the question

That answer is your opinion.

Let’s consider some examples, from silly to serious:

Topic: Dolphins and mermaids

Question: In a mythical match, who would win: a dolphin or a mermaid?

Answer/Opinion: The mermaid would win in a match against a dolphin.

Topic: Autumn

Question: Which has a better fall: New England or Colorado?

Answer/Opinion: Fall is better in New England than Colorado.

Topic: Electric transportation options

Question: Would it be better for an urban dweller to buy an electric bike or an electric car?

Answer/Opinion: An electric bike is a better investment than an electric car.

Your turn: Walk through the three-step process described above to identify your topic and your tentative opinion. You may want to start by brainstorming a list of topics you find interesting and then going use the three-step process to find the opinion that would make the best essay topic.

2. An unequivocal thesis statement

If you walked through our three-step process above, you already have some semblance of a thesis—but don’t get attached too soon! 

A solid essay thesis is best developed through the research process. You shouldn’t land on an opinion before you know the facts. So press pause. Take a step back. And dive into your research.

You’ll want to learn:

• The basic facts of your topic. How long does fall last in New England vs. Colorado? What trees do they have? What colors do those trees turn?
• The facts specifically relevant to your question. Is there any science on how the varying colors of fall influence human brains and moods?
• What experts or other noteworthy and valid sources say about the question you’re considering. Has a well-known arborist waxed eloquent on the beauty of New England falls?

As you learn the different viewpoints people have on your topic, pay attention to the strengths and weaknesses of existing arguments. Is anyone arguing the perspective you’re leaning toward? Do you find their arguments convincing? What do you find unsatisfying about the various arguments? 

Allow the research process to change your mind and/or refine your thinking on the topic. Your opinion may change entirely or become more specific based on what you learn.

Once you’ve done enough research to feel confident in your understanding of the topic and your opinion on it, craft your thesis. 

Your thesis statement should be clear and concise. It should directly state your viewpoint on the topic, as well as the basic case for your thesis.

Thesis 1: In a mythical match, the mermaid would overcome the dolphin due to one distinct advantage: her ability to breathe underwater.

Thesis 2: The full spectrum of color displayed on New England hillsides is just one reason why fall in the northeast is better than in Colorado.

Thesis 3: In addition to not adding to vehicle traffic, electric bikes are a better investment than electric cars because they’re cheaper and require less energy to accomplish the same function of getting the rider from point A to point B.

Your turn: Dive into the research process with a radar up for the arguments your sources are making about your topic. What are the most convincing cases? Should you stick with your initial opinion or change it up? Write your fleshed-out thesis statement.

3. Evidence to back up your thesis

This is a typical place for everyone from undergrads to politicians to get stuck, but the good news is, if you developed your thesis from research, you already have a good bit of evidence to make your case.

Go back through your research notes and compile a list of every …

… or other piece of information that supports your thesis. 

This info can come from research studies you found in scholarly journals, government publications, news sources, encyclopedias, or other credible sources (as long as they fit your professor’s standards).

As you put this list together, watch for any gaps or weak points. Are you missing information on how electric cars versus electric bicycles charge or how long their batteries last? Did you verify that dolphins are, in fact, mammals and can’t breathe underwater like totally-real-and-not-at-all-fake 😉mermaids can? Track down that information.

Next, organize your list. Group the entries so that similar or closely related information is together, and as you do that, start thinking through how to articulate the individual arguments to support your case. 

Depending on the length of your essay, each argument may get only a paragraph or two of space. As you think through those specific arguments, consider what order to put them in. You’ll probably want to start with the simplest argument and work up to more complicated ones so that the arguments can build on each other. 

Your turn: Organize your evidence and write a rough draft of your arguments. Play around with the order to find the most compelling way to argue your case.

4. Rebuttals to disprove opposing theses

You can’t just present the evidence to support your case and totally ignore other viewpoints. To persuade your readers, you’ll need to address any opposing ideas they may hold about your topic. 

You probably found some holes in the opposing views during your research process. Now’s your chance to expose those holes. 

Take some time (and space) to: describe the opposing views and show why those views don’t hold up. You can accomplish this using both logic and facts.

Is a perspective based on a faulty assumption or misconception of the truth? Shoot it down by providing the facts that disprove the opinion.

Is another opinion drawn from bad or unsound reasoning? Show how that argument falls apart.

Some cases may truly be only a matter of opinion, but you still need to articulate why you don’t find the opposing perspective convincing.

Yes, a dolphin might be stronger than a mermaid, but as a mammal, the dolphin must continually return to the surface for air. A mermaid can breathe both underwater and above water, which gives her a distinct advantage in this mythical battle.

While the Rocky Mountain views are stunning, their limited colors—yellow from aspen trees and green from various evergreens—leaves the autumn-lover less than thrilled. The rich reds and oranges and yellows of the New England fall are more satisfying and awe-inspiring.

But what about longer trips that go beyond the city center into the suburbs and beyond? An electric bike wouldn’t be great for those excursions. Wouldn’t an electric car be the better choice then? 

Certainly, an electric car would be better in these cases than a gas-powered car, but if most of a person’s trips are in their hyper-local area, the electric bicycle is a more environmentally friendly option for those day-to-day outings. That person could then participate in a carshare or use public transit, a ride-sharing app, or even a gas-powered car for longer trips—and still use less energy overall than if they drove an electric car for hyper-local and longer area trips.

Your turn: Organize your rebuttal research and write a draft of each one.

5. A convincing conclusion

You have your arguments and rebuttals. You’ve proven your thesis is rock-solid. Now all you have to do is sum up your overall case and give your final word on the subject. 

Don’t repeat everything you’ve already said. Instead, your conclusion should logically draw from the arguments you’ve made to show how they coherently prove your thesis. You’re pulling everything together and zooming back out with a better understanding of the what and why of your thesis. 

A dolphin may never encounter a mermaid in the wild, but if it were to happen, we know how we’d place our bets. Long hair and fish tail, for the win.

For those of us who relish 50-degree days, sharp air, and the vibrant colors of fall, New England offers a season that’s cozier, longer-lasting, and more aesthetically pleasing than “colorful” Colorado. A leaf-peeper’s paradise.

When most of your trips from day to day are within five miles, the more energy-efficient—and yes, cost-efficient—choice is undoubtedly the electric bike. So strap on your helmet, fire up your pedals, and two-wheel away to your next destination with full confidence that you made the right decision for your wallet and the environment.

3 Quick Tips for Writing a Strong Argument

Once you have a draft to work with, use these tips to refine your argument and make sure you’re not losing readers for avoidable reasons.

1. Choose your words thoughtfully.

If you want to win people over to your side, don’t write in a way that shuts your opponents down. Avoid making abrasive or offensive statements. Instead, use a measured, reasonable tone. Appeal to shared values, and let your facts and logic do the hard work of changing people’s minds.

Choose words with AI

You can use AI to turn your general point into a readable argument. Then, you can paraphrase each sentence and choose between competing arguments generated by the AI, until your argument is well-articulated and concise.

2. Prioritize accuracy (and avoid fallacies).

Make sure the facts you use are actually factual. You don’t want to build your argument on false or disproven information. Use the most recent, respected research. Make sure you don’t misconstrue study findings. And when you’re building your case, avoid logical fallacies that undercut your argument.

A few common fallacies to watch out for:

• Strawman: Misrepresenting or oversimplifying an opposing argument to make it easier to refute.
• Appeal to ignorance: Arguing that a certain claim must be true because it hasn’t been proven false.
• Bandwagon: Assumes that if a group of people, experts, etc., agree with a claim, it must be true.
• Hasty generalization: Using a few examples, rather than substantial evidence, to make a sweeping claim.
• Appeal to authority: Overly relying on opinions of people who have authority of some kind.

The strongest arguments rely on trustworthy information and sound logic.

Research and add citations with AI

We recently wrote a three part piece on researching using AI, so be sure to check it out . Going through an organized process of researching and noting your sources correctly will make sure your written text is more accurate.

3. Persuasive essay structure

If you’re building a house, you start with the foundation and go from there. It’s the same with an argument. You want to build from the ground up: provide necessary background information, then your thesis. Then, start with the simplest part of your argument and build up in terms of complexity and the aspect of your thesis that the argument is tackling.

A consistent, internal logic will make it easier for the reader to follow your argument. Plus, you’ll avoid confusing your reader and you won’t be unnecessarily redundant.

The essay structure usually includes the following parts:

• Intro - Hook, Background information, Thesis statement
• Topic sentence #1 , with supporting facts or stats
• Concluding sentence
• Topic sentence #2 , with supporting facts or stats
• Concluding sentence Topic sentence #3 , with supporting facts or stats
• Conclusion - Thesis and main points restated, call to action, thought provoking ending

Are You Ready to Write?

Persuasive essays are a great way to hone your research, writing, and critical thinking skills. Approach this assignment well, and you’ll learn how to form opinions based on information (not just ideas) and make arguments that—if they don’t change minds—at least win readers’ respect. ‍

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Writing a Persuasive Essay

Persuasive essays convince readers to accept a certain perspective. Writing a persuasive essay therefore entails making an argument that will appeal to readers, so they believe what you say has merit. This act of appealing to readers is the art of persuasion, also known as rhetoric. In classical rhetoric, persuasion involves appealing to readers using ethos, pathos, and logos.

In this tutorial, we refer to the sample persuasive draft and final paper written by fictional student Maggie Durham.

THE ART OF PERSUASION

Ethos refers to establishing yourself as a credible source of information. To convince an audience of anything, they must first trust you are being earnest and ethical. One strategy to do this is to write a balanced discussion with relevant and reliable research that supports your claims. Reliable research would include quoting or paraphrasing experts, first-hand witnesses, or authorities. Properly citing your sources, so your readers can also retrieve them, is another factor in establishing a reliable ethos. When writing for academic purposes, expressing your argument using unbiased language and a neutral tone will also indicate you are arguing fairly and with consideration of others having differing views.

When you appeal to your readers’ emotions, you are using pathos. This appeal is common in advertising that convinces consumers they lack something and buying a certain product or service will fulfill that lack. Emotional appeals are subtler in academic writing; they serve to engage a reader in the argument and inspire a change of heart or motivate readers toward a course of action. The examples you use, how you define terms, any comparisons you draw, as well as the language choices you use can draw readers in and impact their willingness to go along with your ideas.

Consider that one purpose of persuasion is to appeal to those who do not already agree with you, so it will be important to show that you understand other points of view. You will also want to avoid derogatory or insulting descriptions or remarks about the opposition. You wouldn’t want to offend the very readers you want to persuade.

Establishing an appeal of logos is to write a sound argument, one that readers can follow and understand. To do this, the facts and evidence you use should be relevant, representative, and reliable, and the writing as a whole should be well organized, developed, and edited.

STEPS FOR WRITING PERSUASIVELY

Step one: determine the topic.

The first step in writing a persuasive essay is to establish the topic. The best topic is one that interests you. You can generate ideas for a topic by prewriting, such as by brainstorming whatever comes to mind, recording in grocery-list fashion your thoughts, or freewriting in complete sentences what you know or think about topics of interest.

Whatever topic you choose, it needs to be:

• Interesting : The topic should appeal both to you and to your intended readers.
• Researchable : A body of knowledge should already exist on the topic.
• Nonfiction : The information about the topic should be factual, not based on personal opinions or conspiracy theories.
• Important : Your reader should think the topic is relevant to them or worthy of being explored and discussed.

Our sample student Maggie Durham has selected the topic of educational technology. We will use Maggie’s sample persuasive draft and final paper as we discuss the steps for writing a persuasive essay.

Step Two: Pose a Research Question

Once you have a topic, the next step is to develop a research question along with related questions that delve further into the first question. If you do not know what to ask, start with one of the question words: What? Who? Where? When? Why? and How? The research question helps you focus or narrow the scope of your topic by identifying a problem, controversy, or aspect of the topic that is worth exploration and discussion. Some general questions about a topic would be the following:

• Who is affected by this problem and how?
• Have previous efforts or polices been made to address this problem? – What are they?
• Why hasn’t this problem been solved already?

For Maggie’s topic of educational technology, potential issues or controversies range from data privacy to digital literacy to the impact of technology on learning, which is what Maggie is interested in. Maggie’s local school district has low literacy rates, so Maggie wants to know the following:

• Are there advantages and/or disadvantages of technology within primary and secondary education?
• Which types of technology are considered the best in terms of quality and endurance?
• What types of technology and/or programs do students like using and why?
• Do teachers know how to use certain technologies with curriculum design, instruction, and/or assessment?

Step Three: Draft a Thesis

A thesis is a claim that asserts your main argument about the topic. As you conduct your research and draft your paper, you may discover information that changes your mind about your thesis, so at this point in writing, the thesis is tentative. Still, it is an important step in narrowing your focus for research and writing.

The thesis should

1. be a complete sentence,

2. identify the topic, and

3. make a specific claim about that topic.

In a persuasive paper, the thesis is a claim that someone should believe or do something. For example, a persuasive thesis might assert that something is effective or ineffective. It might state that a policy should be changed or a plan should be implemented. Or a persuasive thesis might be a plea for people to change their minds about a particular issue.

Once you have figured out your research question, your thesis is simply the answer. Maggie’s thesis is “Schools should supply technology aids to all students to increase student learning and literacy rates.” Her next step is to find evidence to support her claim.

Step Four: Research

Once you have a topic, research question, and thesis, you are ready to conduct research. To find sources that would be appropriate for an academic persuasive essay, begin your search in the library. The Purdue Global Library has a number of tutorials on conducting research, choosing search teams, types of sources, and how to evaluate information to determine its reliability and usefulness. Remember that the research you use will not only provide content to prove your claim and develop your essay, but it will also help to establish your credibility as a reliable source (ethos), create a logical framework for your argument (logos), and appeal to your readers emotionally (pathos).

Step Five: Plan Your Argument; Make an Outline

Once you have located quality source information—facts, examples, definitions, knowledge, and other information that answers your research question(s), you’ll want to create an outline to organize it. The example outline below illustrates a logical organizational plan for writing a persuasive essay. The example outline begins with an introduction that presents the topic, explains the issue, and asserts the position (the thesis). The body then provides the reasoning for the position and addresses the opposing viewpoints that some readers may hold. In your paper, you could modify this organization and address the opposing viewpoints first and then give the reasoning for your viewpoints, or you can alternate and give one opposing viewpoint then counter that with your viewpoint and then give another opposing viewpoint and counter that with your viewpoint.

The outline below also considers the alternatives to the position—certainly, there are other ways to think about or address the issue or situation. Considering the alternatives can be done in conjunction with looking at the opposing viewpoints. You do not always have to disagree with other opinions, either. You can acknowledge that another solution could work or another belief is valid. However, at the end of the body section, you will want to stand by your original position and prove that in light of all the opposing viewpoints and other perspectives, your position has the most merit.

Sample Outline of a Persuasive Argument

• 1. Introduction: Tell them what you will tell them.
• a. Present an interesting fact or description to make the topic clear and capture the reader’s attention.
• b. Define and narrow the topic using facts or descriptions to illustrate what the situation or issue is (and that is it important).
• c. Assert the claim (thesis) that something should be believed or done about the issue. (Some writers also briefly state the reasons behind this claim in the thesis as Maggie does in her paper when she claims that schools should supply tablets to students to increase learning , engagement, and literacy rates ).
• 2. Body: Tell them.
• a. Defend the claim with logical reasons and practical examples based on research.
• b. Anticipate objections to the claim and refute or accommodate them with research.
• c. Consider alternate positions or solutions using examples from research.
• d. Present a final point based on research that supports your claim in light of the objections and alternatives considered.
• 3. Conclusion: Tell them what you told them.
• a. Recap the main points to reinforce the importance of the issue.
• b. Restate the thesis in new wording to reinforce your position.
• c. Make a final remark to leave a lasting impression, so the reader will want to continue this conversation and ideally adopt the belief or take the action you are advocating.

In Maggie’s draft, she introduced the topic with facts about school ratings in Texas and then narrowed the topic using the example of her local school district’s literacy rates. She then claimed the district should provide each student a tablet in order to increase learning (and thus, literacy rates).

Maggie defends her claim with a series of examples from research that proved how access to tablets, technology-integrated curriculums, and “flipped classrooms” have improved literacy rates in other districts. She anticipates objections to her proposal due to the high cost of technology and counter argues this with expert opinions and examples that show partnerships with businesses, personalized curriculums that technology makes possible, and teacher training can balance the costs. Maggie included an alternative solution of having students check out tablets from the library, but her research showed that this still left students needing Wi-Fi at home while her proposal would include a plan for students to access Wi-Fi.

Maggie concluded her argument by pointing out the cost of not helping the students in this way and restated her thesis reaffirming the benefits, and then left the reader with a memorable quote.

Click here to see Maggie’s draft with feedback from her instructor and a peer. Sample Persuasive Draft

Feedback, Revision, and Editing

After you write a draft of your persuasive essay, the next step is to have a peer, instructor, or tutor read it and provide feedback. Without reader feedback, you cannot fully know how your readers will react to your argument. Reader feedback is meant to be constructive. Use it to better understand your readers and craft your argument to more appropriately appeal to them.

Maggie received valuable feedback on her draft from her instructor and classmate. They pointed to where her thesis needed to be even more specific, to paragraphs where a different organization would make her argument more convincing, to parts of the paper that lacked examples, sentences that needed revision and editing for greater clarity, and APA formatting that needed to be edited.

Maggie also took a critical look at her paper and looked back at her writing process. One technique she found helpful was to read her paper aloud because it let her know where her wording and organization were not clear. She did this several times as she revised and again as she edited and refined her paper for sentence level clarity and concision.

In the end, Maggie produced a convincing persuasive essay and effective argument that would appeal to readers who are also interested in the way technology can impact and improve student learning, an important topic in 2014 when this paper was written and still relevant today.

Click here to see Maggie’s final draft after revising and editing. Sample Persuasive Revised

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Home / Guides / Writing Guides / Paper Types / How to Write a Persuasive Essay

How to Write a Persuasive Essay

The entire point of a persuasive essay is to persuade or convince the reader to agree with your perspective on the topic. In this type of essay, you’re not limited to facts. It’s completely acceptable to include your opinions and back them up with facts, where necessary.

Guide Overview

• Be assertive
• Use words that evoke emotion
• Make it personal
• Topic selection hints

Tricks for Writing a Persuasive Essay

In this type of writing, you’ll find it is particularly helpful to focus on the emotional side of things. Make your reader feel what you feel and bring them into your way of thinking. There are a few ways to do that.

Be Assertive

A persuasive essay doesn’t have to be gentle in how it presents your opinion. You really want people to agree with you, so focus on making that happen, even if it means pushing the envelope a little. You’ll tend to get higher grades for this, because the essay is more likely to convince the reader to agree. Consider using an Persuasive Essay Template to understand the key elements of the essay.

Use Words that Evoke Emotion

It’s easier to get people to see things your way when they feel an emotional connection. As you describe your topic, make sure to incorporate words that cause people to feel an emotion. For example, instead of saying, “children are taken from their parents” you might say, “children are torn from the loving arms of their parents, kicking and screaming.” Dramatic? Yes, but it gets the point across and helps your reader experience the

Make it Personal

By using first person, you make the reader feel like they know you. Talking about the reader in second person can help them feel included and begin to imagine themselves in your shoes. Telling someone “many people are affected by this” and telling them “you are affected by this every day” will have very different results.

While each of these tips can help improve your essay, there’s no rule that you have to actually persuade for your own point of view. If you feel the essay would be more interesting if you take the opposite stance, why not write it that way? This will require more research and thinking, but you could end up with a very unique essay that will catch the teacher’s eye.

Topic Selection Hints

A persuasive essay requires a topic that has multiple points of view. In most cases, topics like the moon being made of rock would be difficult to argue, since this is a solid fact. This means you’ll need to choose something that has more than one reasonable opinion related to it.

A good topic for a persuasive essay would be something that you could persuade for or against.

Some examples include:

• Should children be required to use booster seats until age 12?
• Should schools allow the sale of sugary desserts and candy?
• Should marijuana use be legal?
• Should high school students be confined to school grounds during school hours?
• Should GMO food be labeled by law?
• Should police be required to undergo sensitivity training?
• Should the United States withdraw troops from overseas?

Some topics are more controversial than others, but any of these could be argued from either point of view . . . some even allow for multiple points of view.

As you write your persuasive essay, remember that your goal is to get the reader to nod their head and agree with you. Each section of the essay should bring you closer to this goal. If you write the essay with this in mind, you’ll end up with a paper that will receive high grades.

Finally, if you’re ever facing writer’s block for your college paper, consider WriteWell’s template gallery to help you get started.

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How to write a persuasive essay

Published September 27, 2020. Updated May 19, 2022.

Persuasive Essay Definition

A persuasive essay is a type of essay where the writer attempts to persuade the reader to agree with an opinion they feel strongly about. It uses emotions and opinions to convince the reader.

Overview of persuasive essay

Persuasive writing is made up of the three modes of persuasion. They are ethos (ethics), pathos (emotions), and logos (logic). A persuasive essay should clearly state your position in the thesis statement (your opinion on a topic). These types of essays are more like an advertisement. The main goal is to convince someone to accept your position by appealing to their emotions. In order to do that, the writer should know who the audience is. This helps to build the most effective essay possible. Researching information is not so important and does not need to consider counter-arguments.

Here is a helpful table of contents:

Key takeaways

Identifying persuasive writing, know your audience, possible topics for a persuasive essay, parts of an essay, outline example, persuasive essay template and examples, differences between persuasive and argumentative essays.

• The three modes of persuasion are ethos (ethics), pathos (emotions), and logos (logic)
• Persuasive writing uses emotions to convince your reader to agree with you
• A persuasive essay should clearly state your position in the thesis statement (your opinion on a topic)
• The body paragraphs should be reasons explaining your position
• The conclusion should restate your position, summarize your main points, and end with a closing statement

Worried about your writing? Submit your paper for a Chegg Writing essay check , or for an Expert Check proofreading . Both can help you find and fix potential writing issues.

So, what makes persuasive writing… persuasive?

Modes of persuasion

All persuasive writing is made up from the three modes of persuasion: ethos, pathos, and logos:

• Ethos is an appeal to ethics, or values
• Its purpose is to demonstrate the writer’s credibility
• If the reader feels the writer is credible, they are more likely to trust them

Look at this example:

From my experience as a neonatal nurse, newborn babies sleep for 15 to 18 hours per day, but only for short periods of two to four hours at a time.

By highlighting their relevant profession, the writer establishes credibility.

• Pathos is an appeal to emotion
• The writer wants to make the reader feel something, using words
• Here is a good place to use emotive language

Although fostering a senior dog can be heartbreaking in the end, people volunteer to give old dogs love and a comfortable life in their final years.

Words like “heartbreaking” and “final years” are used to make the reader feel compassion.

• Logos is an appeal to logic
• It uses facts, statistics, and data to convince the reader
• Having credible information strengthens the argument

Statistically speaking, bungee jumping, with 1 death per 500,000 jumps, is safer than hang gliding, with 1 death per 560 instances, and canoeing, with 1 death per 10,000 instances.

Presenting the actual numbers of deaths per instance, you can convince a reader that bungee jumping is not as dangerous as most people think.

Although you can use all three modes of persuasion, for a persuasive essay, focus on pathos – the use of emotions.

In a persuasive essay, your main goal is to convince someone to accept your position by appealing to their emotions. In order to do that, you need to know something about who your audience is.

It’s important to know who you are writing for so you know what types of points will appeal to them. This helps you build the most effective essay possible.

For example, say you are writing a social media post trying to convince people to visit a resort. If you were targeting families, you might focus on describing family travel packages and activities for children. If you were targeting college students, you might focus more on more adventurous activities (that are not kid-friendly) or even mention that it’s a great place for spring break.

In both cases, the target audience changes what points are focused on.

If your teacher assigns you a persuasive essay and leaves the topic wide open for you to choose, take a look at this list for some inspiration. Remember that if you strongly disagree with the topic, you could also write a persuasive essay about its opposite!

• Government should provide safety nets for the poor
• If a student is bullied, the bully’s parents should be fined
• The driving age should be raised to 18
• Instagram is bad for body image
• Healthcare should be a basic right in the U.S., like in other countries
• Social media is bad for developing interpersonal communication
• Eating local food is better for the environment than eating vegetarian
• There shouldn’t be billionaires
• High fructose corn syrup should be eliminated from foods
• Growing your own vegetables should be subsidized

Every essay you write will have 3 parts: an introduction, a body, and a conclusion.

Think of the organization of an essay like this:

• Intro – Tell your reader what you’re going to write about.
• Body – Write about it.
• Conclusion – Tell them what you wrote about.

Let’s go through each of those parts for a persuasive essay. Each part will include a sample.

Introduction

You want to begin your essay with a hook. A hook is an interesting opening that “catches” your reader and makes them want to read more. Your hook is usually the first sentence.

After you’ve hooked the reader, you want to give some context or background information. Think of each sentence in your intro as a stepping point. Each sentence brings you closer to your thesis statement.

Once you’ve given some context, write a thesis statement, which tells the reader exactly what they’re going to read about. For a persuasive essay, the thesis statement gives your position: what is your opinion about your topic? Think of it like a map to the rest of your essay.

Sample introduction

Can you identify the hook, background information, and thesis statement in this sample?

Think about your favorite class in high school. Why was this class your favorite? Who was your teacher? I’m sure you loved the subject, but I’m willing to bet the teacher had something to do with it. How many classes did you have every day? Have you ever thought about how many classes your teacher taught? How many tests did he grade? How many essays did she read through and give feedback on? How many faculty meetings did he attend? Teachers are professionals, but their salary has not kept up with the requirements school districts place on them. Teachers should be paid higher salaries.

A typical essay will have between one and three body paragraphs, although you can write as many as you need (or as many as your teacher assigns you). Regardless of how many body paragraphs you have, they will all be organized in a similar manner.

Start with a topic sentence to show your reader what is coming up. This is a general sentence that gives an overview of that paragraph. Since your thesis statement was your position on a topic, the topic sentences will be reasons for your position. Why do you believe what you believe?

The body paragraphs will explain your reasons using emotion and opinions. If you have facts, that’s okay, but remember that you are persuading using emotion more than logic.

End a body paragraph with a sentence that summarizes what you wrote or that leads into the next paragraph.

Sample body paragraphs

Can you identify the topic sentences? Is each topic sentence a reason for the writer’s position? Does the body paragraph explain that reason? Can you identify any of the modes of persuasion – ethos, pathos, logos?

Every quality teacher is both a subject matter expert and good at teaching. These are two different skills. A teacher who connects well with his students but doesn’t know the subject matter isn’t going to be an effective teacher. Conversely, a genius who know the subject matter inside out but can’t find a way to make the material accessible to her students is also not an effective teacher. A good teacher needs to be both; In a way, it’s like every teacher is doing two jobs, but only getting paid for one. Although doubling every teacher’s salary might not be possible, they should at least get a raise.

Another reason that teachers should be paid higher salaries is because their jobs go beyond teaching. They are also coaches, advisors, confidants, classroom managers, and so much more. Can you remember that one teacher who was there for you, beyond their role as an educator? Perhaps it was the history teacher who listened to you when things were tense at home. The writing teacher who encouraged you to pursue your love of short stories. The Spanish teacher who believed in you enough to convince you to apply for that scholarship. Teachers are performing duties that are not part of their contracts, and they do it because they love their job and they love their students. Doesn’t that deserve a raise?

Finally, teachers deserve a raise because their work is not just in the classroom. Teachers are in the classroom, actively teaching, for up to seven hours a day. Before you say that’s not a full work day of 8 hours, remember that teaching is only part of the job. Teachers need time to prepare their lessons. They need time to grade assignments, quizzes, and tests. They need time for administrative duties and meetings. It’s not unusual for a teacher to put in a 50 to 60-hour work week, on a regular basis. Their pay does not reflect the time actually spent working.

This is how your essay ends, and it is the last impression your reader takes away.

Conclude your essay by restating your position from your thesis statement (in the introduction). Then, summarize the main points (your reasons) from your essay.

Try to end with a closing statement: an idea that you want your reader to walk away with.

Sample conclusion

Can you identify the sentence that ties back to the thesis statement? Can you identify the summary of the main points? Can you identify a closing statement?

We all agree that teachers play an essential role in the lives of young people. Teachers know their subjects well, and they know how to share that information in a way that students can understand. Yes, teachers teach students what they need to be productive members of society, but they are also involved in their lives as mentors, coaches, advisors, and more. Plus, the hours they actually put in are not reflected in their pay. If school districts continue to demand that teachers work more, do more, and be more, the least teachers can get in return is pay that represents the importance of that work. It is time to give teachers a raise.

I. Teachers should be paid higher salaries.

II. Good teachers = good at teaching + subject knowledge. Two skills!

A. Good at teaching, bad at subject matter = ineffective

B. Genius at subject matter, bad at teaching = ineffective

C. Teacher needs to be both

• That’s like two jobs!
• Only 1 paycheck

Maybe not double pay, but more

III. Teachers do more than just teach

A. Coaches, advisors, confidants, classroom managers

B. Teacher who was more than just teacher

• History teacher – listened
• Writing teacher – encouraged
• Spanish teacher – scholarship

C. Duties not in their contracts

• Love their job
• Love their students

Doesn’t that deserve a raise?

IV. Work is not just in the classroom

A. Teach for 7 hours/day

B. Prepare lessons

D. Admin and meetings

E. 50-60 hours/week is common

Pay does not reflect time spent working

V. Teachers play essential role in students’ lives. It’s time to give them a raise.

Essay template

Essay example.

Before you turn in that paper, don’t forget to cite your sources in APA format , MLA format , or a style of your choice.

By Halina Stolar. Halina has a Master’s degree in teaching and taught English as a Second Language and writing for almost 15 years overseas. She now works as a freelance writer and geeks out over grammar for fun.

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Persuasive Essay Outline – Examples, Templates & Structure

Amanda Green was born in a small town in the west of Scotland, where everyone knows everyone. I joined the Toastmasters 15 years ago, and I served in nearly every office in the club since then. I love helping others gain confidence and skills they can apply in every day life.

Writing a good persuasive essay can help convince others of a point that means a lot to you. It can be anything from an environmental crisis to something as simple as the importance of ebooks to the modern reader. But how do you write a persuasive essay? Where do you even start? Right here! I’ll explain everything you need to know and even show you an example of a persuasive essay.

What Is a Persuasive Essay?

Persuasive essays are meant to convince someone or a group of people to agree with you on a certain topic or point of view. As the writer, you’ll use definitive evidence, simple reasoning, and even examples to support your argument and persuade them to understand the point of the essay.

Why Write a Persuasive Essay?

Believe it or not, you’ll have to form convincing arguments throughout real life. This could be in the form of college essays or academic essays, speeches for debate club that requires a valid argument, or even presenting an idea for change to your town council.

Argumentative vs. Persuasive Essay

An argumentative essay presents an argument on a specific topic and tries to persuade people to accept that argument as valid. It uses evidence, logic, and sometimes counterarguments to support the main point.

A persuasive essay is similar but presents an argument and focuses more on appealing to the reader’s emotions and values to convince them of your point of view. Think of it as convincing vs. persuading. And, yes, persuasive essays can also use evidence, but they often rely more on personal anecdotes and moral appeals to plead their case.

Let me give you an example. I’m a content writer, but I’m also a published author. If I were going to write an argumentative essay, I’d probably choose a topic like “Do you think authors should self-edit their work?”

But if I were doing a persuasive essay with a similar angle, the topic would look more like “The benefits of self-editing for authors.” Make sense?

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Basically, the main difference between argumentative and persuasive essays is all in the emphasis placed on logic and emotion.

How Many Paragraphs in a Persuasive Essay?

A decent persuasive essay should be around five or six paragraphs with double line spacing, depending on the topic, and can range from 500-2000 words in length. This includes your introduction and conclusion.

Introduction of a Persuasive Essay Example

Our world is facing a crisis, and that crisis is plastic pollution! Every day, a disgusting amount of plastic waste is just dumped into our oceans, killing and harming innocent marine life and ultimately affecting the entire food chain, including us.

Even though there is a clear and present danger that plastic presents, there are still a lot of people and corporations that continue to use single-use plastics with zero regards for their impact on our environment. It’s time for people to really look around and take some responsibility.

We can make a change by learning and using environmentally friendly alternatives in our everyday lives. So, in this essay, I’ll argue that using reusable bags, water bottles, and containers is not only necessary for the health of our precious planet but also a simple and effective way to make a real difference.

A Persuasive Essay Structure

As persuasive essay writers, you can write it however you like, but to follow a traditional persuasive essay structure, use this basic layout to get an effective paper:

• An Introduction: You need a good hook to grab the reader’s attention, a thesis statement presenting the main argument, and a roadmap of the essay, so they know what to expect.
• The Body Paragraphs: 2-3 paragraphs should suffice to provide strong evidence, examples, and any reasoning to support the thesis statement. Each paragraph should focus on a single main idea. 
• The Counterargument: This section acknowledges and refutes the opposing viewpoint, strengthening your argument but still without being as forward as an argumentative essay.
• A Conclusion or Closing Statement: Here is where you would summarize the main points of the essay and a restatement of the thesis, including a call to action for the reader and/or a final thought.

In the end, a persuasive essay usually consists of 5-6 paragraphs and needs to be clear, concise, and logically structured to really persuade the reader on the point.

Tips for Persuasive Writing

• Choose a strong, clear thesis statement that presents your argument well.
• Know your audience and tailor your language and arguments to them. You’ll need a different approach if you’re speaking to a group of teenagers versus a team of adults.
• Use credible and reliable sources to support your argument so no one can second guess your point.
• Expect that people will have counterarguments and prepare a few talking points to address them.
• Use strong pieces of evidence and back them up with facts, statistics, examples, and personal anecdotes. Putting a personal touch on it helps ground the essay and lets people know you’re serious about the topic.
• Use an emotional appeal to engage the reader and make a personal connection to your argument. Basically, tug at their heartstrings and play into their guilt.
• Use clear and concise wordage. Try and avoid confusing technical jargon that might confuse people, and maintain a consistent tone throughout the essay.
• Make sure you’re confident and use an assertive tone but avoid being overly aggressive or confrontational. That will just spark a fight.
• Finish up with a powerful call to action or a final thought that leaves a lasting impact on the reader or listener.
• Use the same font throughout your essay, even for headings and titles. Go with easy-to-read fonts like Calibri, Times New Roman, or Garamond.
• Proofread and edit your essay for clarity, grammar, and style. I cannot stress this one enough. If you’re not confident, use programs like Grammarly to help spot typos and inconsistencies.

Persuasive Essay Topic Ideas

If you’re stuck on some ideas of what to form your essay around, here’s a list of some popular topics to inspire you.

• Importance of recycling and reducing waste in today’s climate.
• The need for stricter gun control laws all over the world.
• A paper on abortion rights in today’s age.
• Benefits of alternative energy sources over fossil fuels and how we can be using them.
• How social media has negative impacts on mental health in kids.
• Key benefits of a vegetarian or vegan diet and how it can help the planet.
• The value of a college education.
• Rise of plastic pollution on the environment and sea life and how it is affecting us.
• Why physical exercise and leading an active lifestyle are important.
• The dangers of texting while driving.
• How our public schools need better funding.
• Benefits of a diverse and inclusive workplace both online and in-person.

Any of these could be used as logical arguments. Still, to make a persuasive argument from either of them, just follow the basic persuasive essay outline examples I’ve given you.

Example of a Persuasive Essay

Introduction.

In today’s age of ever-changing technology, the way we consume and experience books have changed dramatically in just a short time. While physical books were once the only option, ebooks have grown increasingly popular in recent years. In my essay, I’ll argue that, while we all still love paperbacks and hardcovers, ebooks offer so many benefits over physical books, making them the number one choice for most readers today.

Body Paragraph 1: Convenience

Ebooks are convenient; there’s just no denying it. They’re easily accessible through devices like smartphones, tablets, and e-readers, and they allow readers to carry hundreds of books with them at all times. This makes them perfect for traveling or heading to work, or even going to the gym. Readers can now have an entire library with them without the added weight of physical books. Plus, ebooks are easily bought online with just the click of a button, further adding to their convenience.

Body Paragraph 2: Customization

Ebooks offer a level of customization that physical books just can’t match. For one, the font size can be adjusted for easier reading, which is great for those who have eyesight problems. The background color can also be changed from light to dark to reduce eye strain. Personally, as someone who suffers from Meniere’s disease, this is a great feature. All of these options make ebooks a great choice for people with visual impairments, neurological disorders, or reading difficulties.

Body Paragraph 3: Affordability

Ebooks are often far cheaper than physical books, especially when purchased in bulk. You can get an entire series for a fraction of the cost of one paperback. This makes them a more accessible option for budget-conscious readers and people who simply don’t have the disposable funds for books. Also, tons of ebooks are available for free, which is a great option for readers that are looking for ways to save money but keep up with their reading habits.

Body Paragraph 4: Environmentally Friendly

626,000 tons of paper is used to produce all the books we see published every year. That’s a scary number when you consider the rate of deforestation and the state of our world in terms of global warming. We simply can’t afford to move ahead at a rate like that. Ebooks help tackle the issue because they require zero trees to produce.

In conclusion, ebooks offer endless benefits over physical books, including convenience, customization, and affordability. While physical books will always hold a special place in our hearts, you have to admit that the benefits of ebooks just can’t be ignored. For modern, busy, on-the-go readers, ebooks are the preferred choice. It’s time to embrace the digital age and make the switch to ebooks.

Now Write Your Persuasive Essay!

I hope this guide has helped you figure out persuasive essay writing and how to put together powerful arguments. Just stick to the facts and ease the reader into your point with gentle arguments that continue to prove your point. Don’t be afraid to get personal if it can help the essay and convince the reader.

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113 Perfect Persuasive Essay Topics for Any Assignment

General Education

Do you need to write a persuasive essay but aren’t sure what topic to focus on? Were you thrilled when your teacher said you could write about whatever you wanted but are now overwhelmed by the possibilities? We’re here to help!

Read on for a list of 113 top-notch persuasive essay topics, organized into ten categories. To help get you started, we also discuss what a persuasive essay is, how to choose a great topic, and what tips to keep in mind as you write your persuasive essay.

What Is a Persuasive Essay?

In a persuasive essay, you attempt to convince readers to agree with your point of view on an argument. For example, an essay analyzing changes in Italian art during the Renaissance wouldn’t be a persuasive essay, because there’s no argument, but an essay where you argue that Italian art reached its peak during the Renaissance would be a persuasive essay because you’re trying to get your audience to agree with your viewpoint.

Persuasive and argumentative essays both try to convince readers to agree with the author, but the two essay types have key differences. Argumentative essays show a more balanced view of the issue and discuss both sides. Persuasive essays focus more heavily on the side the author agrees with. They also often include more of the author’s opinion than argumentative essays, which tend to use only facts and data to support their argument.

All persuasive essays have the following:

• Introduction: Introduces the topic, explains why it’s important, and ends with the thesis.
• Thesis: A sentence that sums up what the essay be discussing and what your stance on the issue is.
• Reasons you believe your side of the argument: Why do you support the side you do? Typically each main point will have its own body paragraph.
• Evidence supporting your argument: Facts or examples to back up your main points. Even though your opinion is allowed in persuasive essays more than most other essays, having concrete examples will make a stronger argument than relying on your opinion alone.
• Conclusion: Restatement of thesis, summary of main points, and a recap of why the issue is important.

What Makes a Good Persuasive Essay Topic?

Theoretically, you could write a persuasive essay about any subject under the sun, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you should. Certain topics are easier to write a strong persuasive essay on, and below are tips to follow when deciding what you should write about.

It’s a Topic You Care About

Obviously, it’s possible to write an essay about a topic you find completely boring. You’ve probably done it! However, if possible, it’s always better to choose a topic that you care about and are interested in. When this is the case, you’ll find doing the research more enjoyable, writing the essay easier, and your writing will likely be better because you’ll be more passionate about and informed on the topic.

You Have Enough Evidence to Support Your Argument

Just being passionate about a subject isn’t enough to make it a good persuasive essay topic, though. You need to make sure your argument is complex enough to have at least two potential sides to root for, and you need to be able to back up your side with evidence and examples. Even though persuasive essays allow your opinion to feature more than many other essays, you still need concrete evidence to back up your claims, or you’ll end up with a weak essay.

For example, you may passionately believe that mint chocolate chip ice cream is the best ice cream flavor (I agree!), but could you really write an entire essay on this? What would be your reasons for believing mint chocolate chip is the best (besides the fact that it’s delicious)? How would you support your belief? Have enough studies been done on preferred ice cream flavors to support an entire essay? When choosing a persuasive essay idea, you want to find the right balance between something you care about (so you can write well on it) and something the rest of the world cares about (so you can reference evidence to strengthen your position).

It’s a Manageable Topic

Bigger isn’t always better, especially with essay topics. While it may seem like a great idea to choose a huge, complex topic to write about, you’ll likely struggle to sift through all the information and different sides of the issue and winnow them down to one streamlined essay. For example, choosing to write an essay about how WWII impacted American life more than WWI wouldn’t be a great idea because you’d need to analyze all the impacts of both the wars in numerous areas of American life. It’d be a huge undertaking. A better idea would be to choose one impact on American life the wars had (such as changes in female employment) and focus on that. Doing so will make researching and writing your persuasive essay much more feasible.

List of 113 Good Persuasive Essay Topics

Below are over 100 persuasive essay ideas, organized into ten categories. When you find an idea that piques your interest, you’ll choose one side of it to argue for in your essay. For example, if you choose the topic, “should fracking be legal?” you’d decide whether you believe fracking should be legal or illegal, then you’d write an essay arguing all the reasons why your audience should agree with you.

Arts/Culture

• Should students be required to learn an instrument in school?
• Did the end of Game of Thrones fit with the rest of the series?
• Can music be an effective way to treat mental illness?
• With e-readers so popular, have libraries become obsolete?
• Are the Harry Potter books more popular than they deserve to be?
• Should music with offensive language come with a warning label?
• What’s the best way for museums to get more people to visit?
• Should students be able to substitute an art or music class for a PE class in school?
• Are the Kardashians good or bad role models for young people?
• Should people in higher income brackets pay more taxes?
• Should all high school students be required to take a class on financial literacy?
• Is it possible to achieve the American dream, or is it only a myth?
• Is it better to spend a summer as an unpaid intern at a prestigious company or as a paid worker at a local store/restaurant?
• Should the United States impose more or fewer tariffs?
• Should college graduates have their student loans forgiven?
• Should restaurants eliminate tipping and raise staff wages instead?
• Should students learn cursive writing in school?
• Which is more important: PE class or music class?
• Is it better to have year-round school with shorter breaks throughout the year?
• Should class rank be abolished in schools?
• Should students be taught sex education in school?
• Should students be able to attend public universities for free?
• What’s the most effective way to change the behavior of school bullies?
• Are the SAT and ACT accurate ways to measure intelligence?
• Should students be able to learn sign language instead of a foreign language?
• Do the benefits of Greek life at colleges outweigh the negatives?
• Does doing homework actually help students learn more?
• Why do students in many other countries score higher than American students on math exams?
• Should parents/teachers be able to ban certain books from schools?
• What’s the best way to reduce cheating in school?
• Should colleges take a student’s race into account when making admissions decisions?
• Should there be limits to free speech?
• Should students be required to perform community service to graduate high school?
• Should convicted felons who have completed their sentence be allowed to vote?
• Should gun ownership be more tightly regulated?
• Should recycling be made mandatory?
• Should employers be required to offer paid leave to new parents?
• Are there any circumstances where torture should be allowed?
• Should children under the age of 18 be able to get plastic surgery for cosmetic reasons?
• Should white supremacy groups be allowed to hold rallies in public places?
• Does making abortion illegal make women more or less safe?
• Does foreign aid actually help developing countries?
• Are there times a person’s freedom of speech should be curtailed?
• Should people over a certain age not be allowed to adopt children?

Government/Politics

• Should the minimum voting age be raised/lowered/kept the same?
• Should Puerto Rico be granted statehood?
• Should the United States build a border wall with Mexico?
• Who should be the next person printed on American banknotes?
• Should the United States’ military budget be reduced?
• Did China’s one child policy have overall positive or negative impacts on the country?
• Should DREAMers be granted US citizenship?
• Is national security more important than individual privacy?
• What responsibility does the government have to help homeless people?
• Should the electoral college be abolished?
• Should the US increase or decrease the number of refugees it allows in each year?
• Should privately-run prisons be abolished?
• Who was the most/least effective US president?
• Will Brexit end up helping or harming the UK?

• What’s the best way to reduce the spread of Ebola?
• Is the Keto diet a safe and effective way to lose weight?
• Should the FDA regulate vitamins and supplements more strictly?
• Should public schools require all students who attend to be vaccinated?
• Is eating genetically modified food safe?
• What’s the best way to make health insurance more affordable?
• What’s the best way to lower the teen pregnancy rate?
• Should recreational marijuana be legalized nationwide?
• Should birth control pills be available without a prescription?
• Should pregnant women be forbidden from buying cigarettes and alcohol?
• Why has anxiety increased in adolescents?
• Are low-carb or low-fat diets more effective for weight loss?
• What caused the destruction of the USS Maine?
• Was King Arthur a mythical legend or actual Dark Ages king?
• Was the US justified in dropping atomic bombs during WWII?
• What was the primary cause of the Rwandan genocide?
• What happened to the settlers of the Roanoke colony?
• Was disagreement over slavery the primary cause of the US Civil War?
• What has caused the numerous disappearances in the Bermuda triangle?
• Should nuclear power be banned?
• Is scientific testing on animals necessary?
• Do zoos help or harm animals?
• Should scientists be allowed to clone humans?
• Should animals in circuses be banned?
• Should fracking be legal?
• Should people be allowed to keep exotic animals as pets?
• What’s the best way to reduce illegal poaching in Africa?
• What is the best way to reduce the impact of global warming?
• Should euthanasia be legalized?
• Is there legitimate evidence of extraterrestrial life?
• Should people be banned from owning aggressive dog breeds?
• Should the United States devote more money towards space exploration?
• Should the government subsidize renewable forms of energy?
• Is solar energy worth the cost?
• Should stem cells be used in medicine?
• Is it right for the US to leave the Paris Climate Agreement?
• Should athletes who fail a drug test receive a lifetime ban from the sport?
• Should college athletes receive a salary?
• Should the NFL do more to prevent concussions in players?
• Do PE classes help students stay in shape?
• Should horse racing be banned?
• Should cheerleading be considered a sport?
• Should children younger than 18 be allowed to play tackle football?
• Are the costs of hosting an Olympic Games worth it?
• Can online schools be as effective as traditional schools?
• Do violent video games encourage players to be violent in real life?
• Should facial recognition technology be banned?
• Does excessive social media use lead to depression/anxiety?
• Has the rise of translation technology made knowing multiple languages obsolete?
• Was Steve Jobs a visionary or just a great marketer?
• Should social media be banned for children younger than a certain age?
• Which 21st-century invention has had the largest impact on society?
• Are ride-sharing companies like Uber and Lyft good or bad for society?
• Should Facebook have done more to protect the privacy of its users?
• Will technology end up increasing or decreasing inequality worldwide?

Tips for Writing a Strong Persuasive Essay

After you’ve chosen the perfect topic for your persuasive essay, your work isn’t over. Follow the three tips below to create a top-notch essay.

Do Your Research

Your argument will fall apart if you don’t fully understand the issue you’re discussing or you overlook an important piece of it. Readers won’t be convinced by someone who doesn’t know the subject, and you likely won’t persuade any of them to begin supporting your viewpoint. Before you begin writing a single word of your essay, research your topic thoroughly. Study different sources, learn about the different sides of the argument, ask anyone who’s an expert on the topic what their opinion is, etc. You might be tempted to start writing right away, but by doing your research, you’ll make the writing process much easier when the time comes.

Make Your Thesis Perfect

Your thesis is the most important sentence in your persuasive essay. Just by reading that single sentence, your audience should know exactly what topic you’ll be discussing and where you stand on the issue. You want your thesis to be crystal clear and to accurately set up the rest of your essay. Asking classmates or your teacher to look it over before you begin writing the rest of your essay can be a big help if you’re not entirely confident in your thesis.

Consider the Other Side

You’ll spend most of your essay focusing on your side of the argument since that’s what you want readers to come away believing. However, don’t think that means you can ignore other sides of the issue. In your essay, be sure to discuss the other side’s argument, as well as why you believe this view is weak or untrue. Researching all the different viewpoints and including them in your essay will increase the quality of your writing by making your essay more complete and nuanced.

Summary: Persuasive Essay Ideas

Good persuasive essay topics can be difficult to come up with, but in this guide we’ve created a list of 113 excellent essay topics for you to browse. The best persuasive essay ideas will be those that you are interested in, have enough evidence to support your argument, and aren’t too complicated to be summarized in an essay.

After you’ve chosen your essay topic, keep these three tips in mind when you begin writing:

• Do your research
• Make your thesis perfect
• Consider the other side

What's Next?

Need ideas for a research paper topic as well? Our guide to research paper topics has over 100 topics in ten categories so you can be sure to find the perfect topic for you.

Thinking about taking an AP English class? Read our guide on AP English classes to learn whether you should take AP English Language or AP English Literature (or both!)

Deciding between the SAT or ACT? Find out for sure which you will do the best on . Also read a detailed comparison between the two tests .

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Christine graduated from Michigan State University with degrees in Environmental Biology and Geography and received her Master's from Duke University. In high school she scored in the 99th percentile on the SAT and was named a National Merit Finalist. She has taught English and biology in several countries.

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Persuasive Essay Outline

Persuasive Essay Outline explanation

• Structure of a five paragraph persuasive essay
• Introduction (3-5 sentences)
• Hook: Grab the reader’s attention with a quote, scenario, question, vivid description, etc. Must be related to your topic. (1-2 sentences)
• Thesis statement: Simply and clearly state your position on the issue(1 sentence )
• Three arguments. Choose three arguments you can use to convince your reader of your position. Briefly state these arguments here. (1-3 sentences)
• Paragraph 2 (5-8 sentences)
• Go back to paragraph one and find your first argument. Then write a paragraph about it.
• Use specific examples to support your argument
• Write a transition sentence.
• Paragraph 3 (5-8 sentences)
• Go back to paragraph one and find your second argument. Write a paragraph about it .
• Use specific examples to support your argument. You should authoritative websites to give facts, statistics, supporting quotations, studies, research, etc.
•  Write a transition sentence.
• Paragraph 4 (5-8 sentences)
• Go back to paragraph one and find your third argument. Write a paragraph about it.
• Conclusion (3-5 sentences)
• Summarize—restate your thesis statement and three arguments in different words
• Make a closing statement. Tie your closing statement back to your opening hook.

Outline Persuasive Essay

• Directions: Use the outline form below to organize your persuasive essay. Choose your topic and three arguments to support your opinion. Section I is for your introduction. Section II is for the body (one paragraph for each argument). Section III is for your conclusion. Topic___________________________________________________________________ I. Introduction

 a. Hook _______________________________________________________

b. Thesis statement______________________________________________

c. Argument #1_________________________________________________

d. Argument #2_________________________________________________

e. Argument #3_________________________________________________

II. Body  Paragraph #1

      a. Argument #1_________________________________________________

      b.  Example #1____________________________________________

      c. Example #2____________________________________________

      d. Example #3____________________________________________

      e. Transition_____________________________________________

     Body Paragraph #2

      a. Argument #2 _________________________________________________

      Body Paragraph #3

      a. Argument #3 _________________________________________________

       b.  Example #1____________________________________________

      c. Example #2____________________________________________

III. Conclusion

a. Restate thesis (different words)__________________________________

b. Restate arguments (different words)___ ____________________________

c. Clincher (tie it all together)______________________________________

How to Write a Persuasive Essay: Step-by-Step Guide + Examples

Have you ever tried to get somebody round to your way of thinking? Then you should know how daunting the task is. Still, if your persuasion is successful, the result is emotionally rewarding.

A persuasive essay is a type of writing that uses facts and logic to argument and substantiate such or another point of view. The purpose is to assure the reader that the author’s position is viable. In this article by Custom-writing experts, you can find a guide on persuasive writing, compelling examples, and outline structure. Continue reading and learn how to write a persuasive essay!

⚖️ Argumentative vs. Persuasive Essay

• 🐾 Step-by-Step Writing Guide

🔗 References

An argumentative essay intends to attack the opposing point of view, discussing its drawbacks and inconsistencies. A persuasive essay describes only the writer’s opinion, explaining why it is a believable one. In other words, you are not an opponent; you are an advocate.

A persuasive essay primarily resorts to emotions and personal ideas on a deeper level of meaning, while an argumentative one invokes logic reasoning. Despite the superficial similarity of these two genres, argumentative speech presupposes intense research of the subject, while persuasive speech requires a good knowledge of the audience.

🐾 How to Write a Persuasive Essay Step by Step

These nine steps are the closest thing you will find to a shortcut for writing to persuade. With practice, you may get through these steps quickly—or even figure out new techniques in persuasive writing.

📑 Persuasive Essay Outline

Below you’ll find an example of a persuasive essay outline . Remember: papers in this genre are more flexible than argumentative essays are. You don’t need to build a perfectly logical structure here. Your goal is to persuade your reader.

Note that the next section contains a sample written in accordance with this outline.

Persuasive Essay Introduction

• Hook: start with an intriguing sentence.
• Background: describe the context of the discussed issue and familiarize the reader with the argument.
• Definitions: if your essay dwells upon a theoretical subject matter, be sure to explain the complicated terms.
• Thesis statement: state the purpose of your piece of writing clearly and concisely. This is the most substantial sentence of the entire essay, so take your time formulating it.

Persuasive Essay Body

Use the following template for each paragraph.

• Topic sentence: linking each new idea to the thesis, it introduces a paragraph. Use only one separate argument for each section, stating it in the topic sentence.
• Evidence: substantiate the previous sentence with reliable information. If it is your personal opinion, give the reasons why you think so.
• Analysis: build the argument, explaining how the evidence supports your thesis.

Persuasive Essay Conclusion

• Summary: briefly list the main points of the essay in a couple of sentences.
• Significance: connect your essay to a broader idea.
• Future: how can your argument be developed?

⭐ Persuasive Essay Examples

In this section, there are three great persuasive essay examples. The first one is written in accordance with the outline above, will the components indicated. Two others are downloadable.

Example #1: Being a Millionaire is a Bad Thing

Introduction.

Paragraph #1

Paragraph #2

Paragraph #3

Example #2: Teachers or Doctors?

The importance of doctors in the period of the COVID-19 pandemic is difficult to overstate. The well-being of the nation depends on how well doctors can fulfill their duties before society. The US society acknowledges the importance of doctors and healthcare, as it is ready to pay large sums of money to cure the diseases. However, during the lockdown, students and parents all around the world began to understand the importance of teachers.

Before lockdown, everyone took the presence of teachers for granted, as they were always available free of charge. In this country, it has always been the case that while doctors received praises and monetary benefits, teachers remained humble, even though they play the most important role for humanity: passing the knowledge through generations. How fair is that? The present paper claims that even in the period of the pandemic, teachers contribute more to modern society than doctors do.

Example #3: Is Online or Homeschool More Effective?

The learning process can be divided into traditional education in an educational institution and distance learning. The latter form has recently become widely popular due to the development of technology. Besides, the COVID-19 pandemic is driving the increased interest in distance learning. However, there is controversy about whether this form of training is sufficient enough. This essay aims to examine online and homeschooling in a historical and contemporary context and to confirm the thesis that such activity is at least equivalent to a standard type of education.

Persuasive Essay Topics

• Why do managers hate the performance evaluation?
• Why human cloning should be prohibited.
• Social media have negative physical and psychological effect on teenagers.
• Using cell phones while driving should be completely forbidden.  
• Why is business ethics important?
• Media should change its negative representation of ageing and older people.
• What is going on with the world? 
• Good communication skills are critical for successful business.
• Why capitalism is the best economic system.  
• Sleep is extremely important for human health and wellbeing.
• Face-to-face education is more effective than online education.
• Why video games can be beneficial for teenagers.
• Bullies should be expelled from school as they encroach on the school safety.
• Why accountancy is a great occupation and more people should consider it as a future career.
• The reasons art and music therapy should be included in basic health insurance.
• Impact of climate change on the indoor environment.
• Parents should vaccinate their children to prevent the spread of deadly diseases.
• Why celebrities should pay more attention to the values they promote.
• What is wrong with realism? 
• Why water recycling should be every government’s priority.
• Media spreads fear and panic among people.
• Why e-business is very important for modern organizations.
• People should own guns for self-protection.  
• The neccessity of container deposit legislation.
• We must save crocodiles to protect ecological balance.
• Why we should pay more attention to renewable energy projects.
• Anthropology is a critically relevant science.  
• Why it’s important to create a new global financial order.
• Why biodiversity is crucial for the environment?
• Why process safety management is crucial for every organization.
• Speed limits must not be increased.
• What’s wrong with grades at school ?
• Why tattoos should be considered as a form of fine art.  
• Using all-natural bath and body products is the best choice for human health and safety.
• What is cancel culture?
• Why the Internet has become a problem of modern society.
• Illegal immigrants should be provided with basic social services.
• Smoking in public places must be banned for people’s safety and comfort.
• Why it is essential to control our nutrition.
• How to stimulate economic growth? 
• Why exercise is beneficial for people.  
• Studying history is decisive for the modern world.
• We must decrease fuel consumption to stop global warming.
• Why fighting social inequality is necessary.
• Why should businesses welcome remote work? 
• Social media harms communication within families.
• College athletes should be paid for their achievements.
• Electronic books should replace print books.
• People should stop cutting down rainforest.  
• Why every company should have a web page.
• Tips To Write An Effective Persuasive Essay: The College Puzzle, Stanford University
• 31 Powerful Persuasive Writing Techniques: Writtent
• Persuasive Essay Outline: Houston Community College System
• Essays that Worked: Hamilton College
• Argumentative Essays // Purdue Writing Lab
• Persuasion – Writing for Success (University of Minnesota)
• Persuasive Writing (Manitoba Education)
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How to Write a Concluding Paragraph for a Persuasive Essay

Last Updated: February 13, 2024 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by Jake Adams . Jake Adams is an academic tutor and the owner of Simplifi EDU, a Santa Monica, California based online tutoring business offering learning resources and online tutors for academic subjects K-College, SAT & ACT prep, and college admissions applications. With over 14 years of professional tutoring experience, Jake is dedicated to providing his clients the very best online tutoring experience and access to a network of excellent undergraduate and graduate-level tutors from top colleges all over the nation. Jake holds a BS in International Business and Marketing from Pepperdine University. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 192,507 times.

Giving an Overview

• If it helps, print out a copy of the body of the paper and highlight the main points to be summarized.

• For instance, "Gun laws should be changed to reflect the evolving needs of today's generations.”

• You can, however, create a call to action or end with a creative and engaging hook statement.

• Using the first sentence to restate the hypothesis in your introduction, in different wording
• Writing the next 2-3 sentence to summarize the key arguments made in your paper
• Having the last 1-2 sentences be a grand statement of conclusion, saying what your final findings are

Using Convincing Wording

• For instance, "Regular exercise reduces stress, improves your sleep, and promotes weight loss."

• For instance, instead of writing, "The traditional American Dream is not dead and gone," write, "The American Dream is not dead.”
• However, keep in mind that in some cases, more elaborate wording may be necessary to drive home your point.

Establishing the Relevance of Your Conclusion

• For example,"What will happen to small businesses as different industries continue to go digital?"

• For example, "Being environmentally responsible is a necessary step for all people, in order to save the parts of nature that we have left."

• For example, "If this competitive nature of school work were replaced with a more community-based learning approach, we might see happier, healthier children."

Community Q&A

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• ↑ Jake Adams. Academic Tutor & Test Prep Specialist. Expert Interview. 20 May 2020.
• ↑ https://opentextbc.ca/writingforsuccess/chapter/chapter-10-persuasion/
• ↑ http://penandthepad.com/write-concluding-paragraph-persuasive-essay-college-1412.html
• ↑ http://examples.yourdictionary.com/parallel-structure-examples.html
• ↑ http://writingcenter.fas.harvard.edu/pages/ending-essay-conclusions
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/common_writing_assignments/argument_papers/conclusions.html

About This Article

To write a concluding paragraph for your persuasive essay, you’ll need to briefly summarize your main arguments. Use the first sentence to restate your hypothesis from your introduction in different words. Then, spend 2 or 3 sentences reminding the reader of the main arguments you made throughout the essay. Use strong, simple language to emphasize your conclusion. You can also add a call to action or tell the reader what you think should happen as a result of your conclusions. For example, "If this competitive nature of school work were replaced with a more community-based learning approach, we might see happier, healthier children." For more tips from our Teaching co-author, including how to position your arguments within the bigger picture, read on! Did this summary help you? Yes No

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• How to Write a Thesis Statement | 4 Steps & Examples

How to Write a Thesis Statement | 4 Steps & Examples

Published on January 11, 2019 by Shona McCombes . Revised on August 15, 2023 by Eoghan Ryan.

A thesis statement is a sentence that sums up the central point of your paper or essay . It usually comes near the end of your introduction .

Your thesis will look a bit different depending on the type of essay you’re writing. But the thesis statement should always clearly state the main idea you want to get across. Everything else in your essay should relate back to this idea.

You can write your thesis statement by following four simple steps:

• Start with a question
• Write your initial answer
• Develop your answer
• Refine your thesis statement

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Table of contents

What is a thesis statement, placement of the thesis statement, step 1: start with a question, step 2: write your initial answer, step 3: develop your answer, step 4: refine your thesis statement, types of thesis statements, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about thesis statements.

A thesis statement summarizes the central points of your essay. It is a signpost telling the reader what the essay will argue and why.

The best thesis statements are:

• Concise: A good thesis statement is short and sweet—don’t use more words than necessary. State your point clearly and directly in one or two sentences.
• Contentious: Your thesis shouldn’t be a simple statement of fact that everyone already knows. A good thesis statement is a claim that requires further evidence or analysis to back it up.
• Coherent: Everything mentioned in your thesis statement must be supported and explained in the rest of your paper.

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The thesis statement generally appears at the end of your essay introduction or research paper introduction .

The spread of the internet has had a world-changing effect, not least on the world of education. The use of the internet in academic contexts and among young people more generally is hotly debated. For many who did not grow up with this technology, its effects seem alarming and potentially harmful. This concern, while understandable, is misguided. The negatives of internet use are outweighed by its many benefits for education: the internet facilitates easier access to information, exposure to different perspectives, and a flexible learning environment for both students and teachers.

You should come up with an initial thesis, sometimes called a working thesis , early in the writing process . As soon as you’ve decided on your essay topic , you need to work out what you want to say about it—a clear thesis will give your essay direction and structure.

You might already have a question in your assignment, but if not, try to come up with your own. What would you like to find out or decide about your topic?

For example, you might ask:

After some initial research, you can formulate a tentative answer to this question. At this stage it can be simple, and it should guide the research process and writing process .

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Now you need to consider why this is your answer and how you will convince your reader to agree with you. As you read more about your topic and begin writing, your answer should get more detailed.

In your essay about the internet and education, the thesis states your position and sketches out the key arguments you’ll use to support it.

The negatives of internet use are outweighed by its many benefits for education because it facilitates easier access to information.

In your essay about braille, the thesis statement summarizes the key historical development that you’ll explain.

The invention of braille in the 19th century transformed the lives of blind people, allowing them to participate more actively in public life.

A strong thesis statement should tell the reader:

• Why you hold this position
• What they’ll learn from your essay
• The key points of your argument or narrative

The final thesis statement doesn’t just state your position, but summarizes your overall argument or the entire topic you’re going to explain. To strengthen a weak thesis statement, it can help to consider the broader context of your topic.

These examples are more specific and show that you’ll explore your topic in depth.

Your thesis statement should match the goals of your essay, which vary depending on the type of essay you’re writing:

• In an argumentative essay , your thesis statement should take a strong position. Your aim in the essay is to convince your reader of this thesis based on evidence and logical reasoning.
• In an expository essay , you’ll aim to explain the facts of a topic or process. Your thesis statement doesn’t have to include a strong opinion in this case, but it should clearly state the central point you want to make, and mention the key elements you’ll explain.

If you want to know more about AI tools , college essays , or fallacies make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples or go directly to our tools!

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A thesis statement is a sentence that sums up the central point of your paper or essay . Everything else you write should relate to this key idea.

The thesis statement is essential in any academic essay or research paper for two main reasons:

• It gives your writing direction and focus.
• It gives the reader a concise summary of your main point.

Without a clear thesis statement, an essay can end up rambling and unfocused, leaving your reader unsure of exactly what you want to say.

Follow these four steps to come up with a thesis statement :

• Ask a question about your topic .
• Write your initial answer.
• Develop your answer by including reasons.
• Refine your answer, adding more detail and nuance.

The thesis statement should be placed at the end of your essay introduction .

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Are you gearing up to write a persuasive essay but feeling lost? It's normal to feel overwhelmed when it comes time to tackle such an important assignment. 

But don't worry! CollegeEssay.org is here to help you understand and perfect the art of writing a persuasive essay outline. 

You can create an outline that will help you write a compelling essay by following a few simple steps. 

So what are you waiting for? Read on for tips on how to get started!

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Writing a Persuasive Essay Outline

Are you writing a persuasive essay but don’t know where to start? Drafting an outline before you begin your persuasive essay can be incredibly helpful.

An outline acts as a roadmap for your paper and helps ensure that your ideas are organized logically. It also helps you determine how much research is needed and what evidence should be included in the essay. 

What is a Persuasive Essay Outline? 

A persuasive essay outline is an organized list of arguments and evidence to persuade someone on a specific topic or issue. 

It follows the same basic structure as most essays: introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion. 

The key difference is that each point should provide evidence or reasons to support the thesis statement. This type of essay requires critical thinking skills and the ability to form clear arguments that support your point of view. 

Creating an outline before starting your paper will save time in the long run because it gives you a structure to follow. It also allows you to see if any points need further research or clarification before beginning the writing process. 

Additionally, an outline helps ensure that all relevant points are covered in the paper, and none are overlooked or forgotten. By setting an outline for your essay, your writing process will be quite easy.

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Persuasive Essay Outline Format

There are different ways of writing the outline, but preparing and conveying your idea to the audience is necessary.  A persuasive essay outline is easier to write if you follow the proper steps. The persuasive essay outline contains three main components:

• Introduction
• Body Paragraphs

Persuasive Essay Introduction

The persuasive essay outline starts with the introduction paragraph. This part is important in the essay to grab the reader’s attention. It should engage the reader throughout the essay. The essay introduction should be attention-grabbing and encourage the reader to read further.  

The following elements must be included in an introductory paragraph:

• Know Your Topic 

The first step in writing the introduction is to think about the persuasive essay topic . It will help to understand your essay’s purpose and give you a clear idea about your topic. 

• Start with an Interesting Hook Statement  

It is the part where you start your writing with a hook. Writing the essay introduction with an interesting hook is the main skill of the writer. A hook is a captivating phrase that captures the reader’s attention. The writer can add quotes, memorable stories, or anything that attracts the audience.

• Know Your Audience 

It is the writer’s job to explain the issue and its importance in the introduction part. The writer's objective is to convince the reader to read the essay and support your side. 

After understanding the topic of the essay, the writer knows its audience. Understanding your audience before writing is better because a persuasive essay aims to convince the reader.

• State the Thesis Statement    

A thesis statement is the last component of the introduction part. It is written at the end of the introduction and summarizes the essay's main idea.

The thesis statement conveys the right message to the reader that you are trying to support. It is the whole essay’s base and includes all the points discussed in the body paragraphs.  

Persuasive Essay Body Paragraphs

The body paragraphs explain the reasoning of the thesis statement by facts or examples. The number of body paragraphs in the essay depends on the scope of the topic. 

Here are some tips to keep in mind while writing a body paragraph.

• Explain Your Main Idea 

Each body paragraph in the essay explains a single idea with proof and evidence. This part decides whether the audience supports your idea or not.

• Support Your Perspective

The content in the body paragraphs proves your main argument. All the ideas provided in the essay should be supported using relevant facts. In the body paragraphs, include opposite viewpoints and counter-arguments. 

Through body paragraphs, you will establish your position. 

You will easily persuade your reader through body paragraphs by presenting facts about the particular topic. 

Use statistics in your essay and strongly prove your argument. But make sure that all the facts and statistics you use are authentic.

• Transition Words

Use transition words and connect all your ideas in an essay. To maintain the flow between paragraphs, use these words like, however, thus, etc. Also, keep the word count in your mind.    

• Concluding Sentences

End body paragraphs with concluding sentences. Describe how the point supports your argument.  Use transitioning sentences and concluding phrases to summarize your essay.

Persuasive Essay Conclusion

The conclusion is the essay's final part. Summarize all the main points without adding new information. The conclusion is the closure of the main arguments mentioned in the body paragraphs.

Try to make your conclusion more effective by adding personal comments about the essay.

The main purpose of the conclusion is to reestablish what you already mentioned in the essay. Close the conclusion part with a question, action call, or prediction.

In conclusion, convince the reader to do further research on the topic.  

Persuasive Essay Outline Template

Here is a detailed outline for a persuasive essay. Follow this to make a perfect outline for your essay. 

Persuasive Essay Outline Examples

Outlining your persuasive essay is a great way to make sure you have all the necessary points and facts in order. 

Below are some examples of persuasive essay outlines that can be used to help create an effective paper:

Persuasive Essay Outline Worksheet

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Summing up, the persuasive essay outline format examples we have shared are a great start for you.

Check out some more interesting  persuasive essay examples ! They might inspire you for your next essay.

However, they only scratch the surface of what our team can do for you. 

Contact us today if you want help writing an amazing essay that will persuade your readers. Our expert essay writer online has years of experience crafting essays that get results.

With the help of our college essay writing service , you’ll be able to achieve the grades you deserve. Our persuasive essay writing service has the best persuasive essay writer. 

So what are you waiting for? Contact us today and try our AI essay writing tools to experience excellence!    

Frequently Asked Questions

How do i write an effective persuasive essay outline.

An essay outline should include a thesis statement, evidence, and a conclusion reiterating the essay's main points. Additionally, persuasive writers can use different strategies to strengthen their persuasive arguments.

What should I consider when creating my persuasive essay outline?

When creating a persuasive essay outline, you should consider the essay's purpose, audience, and context. You should also ensure the persuasive essay is written clearly and concisely.

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At CollegeEssay.org, our persuasive essay writers can help you create an effective outline. It includes arguments, evidence, examples, a conclusion, and persuasive techniques tailored to your needs.

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Unlock Persuasive Writing with Persuasion Maps

Have you ever found yourself staring at a blank page, struggling to organize your thoughts for a crucial presentation or a compelling essay? We’ve all been there. Whether you’re a student trying to ace that debate class, a professional aiming to win over clients, or an activist hoping to inspire change, the art of persuasion can sometimes feel like an elusive skill.

Enter the persuasion map – your new secret weapon in the world of convincing communication. Think of it as a GPS for your ideas, guiding you from your main argument to a powerful conclusion, with pit stops at well-supported reasons along the way. It’s like having a personal coach for your thoughts, helping you avoid those pesky logical dead-ends and keeping you on the path to a rock-solid argument.

In this guide, we’re going to explore how this simple yet powerful tool can transform your approach to persuasive writing and speaking. Whether you’re a novice looking to build confidence or a seasoned communicator seeking to sharpen your skills, get ready to discover how persuasion maps can be your ticket to more impactful, influential, and inspiring communication.

What is a Persuasion Map?

A Persuasion Map is an interactive tool designed to help individuals structure their arguments logically for essays, speeches, or debates. It serves as a graphic organizer, allowing users to map out their main thesis, supporting reasons, and evidence clearly and coherently. By visualizing arguments in a structured format, a persuasion map helps ensure that each point is logically connected and well-supported.

Historically and practically significant in various fields, persuasion maps enhance clarity and logical flow, making them invaluable in both academic and professional contexts. Whether you are a student crafting a persuasive essay, a business professional preparing a compelling presentation, or a programmer outlining a project proposal, a persuasion map simplifies the construction of your arguments. This tool aids in avoiding logical fallacies and helps in presenting a well-founded, convincing argument by

Streamlining the process of argument construction by connecting reasons and supporting evidence in a logical manner.

Aids in the creation of clear, structured thinking, ensuring each point is effectively communicated.

Enhances overall clarity, making the final output more organized and reliable.

For a comprehensive rundown on the uses and benefits of persuasion maps, check out our persuasion map templates .

• Ready to use
• Fully customizable template
• Get Started in seconds

Why You Need Persuasion Maps To Make Your Writing More Persuasive

Persuasive writing is a crucial skill that spans a multitude of domains, offering immense benefits and driving substantial impact. Utilizing a persuasion map tool can significantly enhance this skill. Here are some pivotal reasons why persuasive writing is essential:

Driving Business Success: Persuasive writing in the business realm often translates to compelling proposals, convincing presentations, and effective marketing strategies. It enables professionals to articulate their value propositions clearly, fostering improved sales and stronger client relationships.

Catalyzing Social and Political Change: Historically, persuasive writing has been a cornerstone of social movements and political reforms. It equips individuals with the power to influence public opinion, advocate for policies, and drive activism. Notable examples include landmark speeches and influential essays that have shaped societal norms and legislation.

Shaping Cultural Movements: Persuasive writing in literature, media, and art plays a significant role in shaping cultural narratives and public perception. It allows writers and creators to challenge existing paradigms, promote cultural awareness, and foster appreciation for diverse perspectives.

Power to Influence and Inspire: On a personal level, persuasive writing empowers individuals to express their thoughts compellingly, whether in professional emails, academic papers, or social media posts. It inspires and motivates audiences, driving engagement and action.

Incorporating a persuasion map can simplify the process of crafting persuasive content by providing a structured framework that emphasizes logical argumentation and coherent thought flow. This tool aligns with the professional and academic needs of users by enhancing clarity, organization, and reliability in their writing.

Types of Persuasion Maps

Persuasion maps are dynamic tools that play a crucial role in structuring arguments effectively. There are several types of persuasion maps, each catering to specific needs and use cases. Understanding these different types can help you choose the right one for your task. Here’s an overview of three popular forms:

Three-Reason Persuasion Map

A Three-Reason Persuasion Map is commonly used in academic settings such as essays and debates. It enables students to clearly outline their main argument and support it with three solid reasons. Each reason is backed by relevant facts or examples, helping to build a coherent and persuasive narrative.For instance, a student arguing for the benefits of school uniforms might list improved student behavior, enhanced sense of community, and cost savings as the three main reasons.

Concept Persuasion Map

The Concept Persuasion Map is designed to connect various subject concepts and knowledge points, making it ideal for educational purposes. It helps users remember and understand complex ideas by linking them with supporting definitions and evidence. This type of persuasion map is particularly useful for subjects that require deep understanding and connections between different concepts. Consider an educator explaining the importance of renewable energy; they could use a concept persuasion map to connect different energy sources, their benefits, and how they collectively contribute to environmental sustainability. This enables a deeper understanding and retention of complex subject matter.

Project Performance Map

The Project Performance Map is a valuable tool for business professionals. It illustrates the factors affecting a project’s performance, such as key reasons, risk factors, and necessary actions. This type of map can help project leaders effectively plan and launch tasks, ensuring that all critical elements are considered and addressed. For instance, a project manager might use this map to illustrate how resource allocation, time management, and team collaboration contribute to the successful completion of a project. This type of mapping aids in identifying bottlenecks and improving overall project execution.

Utilizing these different types of persuasion maps can significantly enhance your ability to present structured, compelling arguments. Whether you’re a student, educator, or business professional, choosing the right persuasion map can make a profound difference in achieving your objectives. Explore the benefits of using a persuasion map for your next project and see how tools like Creately can enhance your persuasive writing and argument structuring efforts.

How to Create an Effective Persuasion Map

Utilizing a persuasion map can streamline your argument structuring process and make your persuasive writing more compelling. Follow these step-by-step guidelines to create a powerful persuasion map:

Step 1: Narrow Down Your Topic

The first step in crafting an effective persuasion map is to pinpoint a clear, concise topic. Begin by conducting thorough research to gather a strong base of information. Narrowing down your topic ensures that your argument remains focused and relevant.

Step 2: Write Down Your Argument

Once your topic is clear, decide on your stance regarding the issue. This will be your main argument. Write it clearly at the center of your persuasion map. This serves as the foundation of your persuasive piece.

Step 3: Support Your Reasons

In the next layer, identify and list three key reasons that support your main argument. These reasons should be compelling and backed by valid research.

Reason 1: Provide evidence and examples that support this reason.

Reason 2: Detail additional supportive facts and data.

Reason 3: Offer further substantiation with relevant information.

Each of these reasons forms a crucial part of the argument structure, making your arguments stronger and more credible.

Step 4: Write a Compelling Conclusion

Finally, bring your persuasion map to a close with a strong conclusion. This should summarize your main argument and the supporting reasons, reinforcing the validity of your stance. A well-crafted conclusion not only ties all your points together but also leaves a lasting impression on your audience.

By following these steps, you can make effective use of a persuasion map to enhance your argumentative skills and create persuasive content effortlessly.

Benefits of Using Persuasion Maps in Various Domains

Academic benefits.

Persuasion maps are invaluable tools in the realm of education. By enhancing critical thinking and writing skills, they help students structure their essays, debates, and projects logically. The visual representation allows for clearer understanding and the ability to connect supporting factors with main arguments effectively. Additionally, students learn to back their claims with evidence, lending more credibility to their work. For more information check out our guide on types of graphic organizers .

Professional Benefits

In the professional world, persuasion maps are essential for structuring arguments in presentations and project proposals. Using a persuasion map streamlines the creation of cohesive, convincing narratives that can drive business success. The organized layout not only clarifies thinking but also ensures that all supporting data is logically connected, enhancing the overall impact of the presentation.

General Advantages

Beyond academia and professional environments, persuasion maps offer general advantages that can benefit a broad audience. These tools improve clarity, organization, and reliability in all types of content. Whether drafting a persuasive letter, preparing for a debate, or developing a strategic plan, the visualization and logical flow afforded by a persuasion map can make complex arguments clearer and more compelling.

In essence, persuasion maps facilitate clear logic and structured thinking, fundamental aspects for any form of persuasive writing. Tools like Creately take this a step further by offering collaborative planning, visualization capabilities, and high-level process mapping. These features make it easier to create detailed and structured persuasion maps that enhance the effectiveness of your arguments.

How Creately Enhances Your Persuasive Writing

Creately is your all-in-one solution for creating, collaborating, and visualizing persuasive writing frameworks using its comprehensive persuasion map tool. This robust platform is designed to streamline the process of structuring persuasive arguments, making it an invaluable resource for students, educators, business professionals, and anyone looking to enhance their persuasive writing skills.

Creately’s Key Features

Collaborative Planning: Creately facilitates seamless collaboration, allowing multiple users to contribute and refine persuasive maps in real-time. This feature is particularly useful for team presentations and group projects.

Visualization : With Creately’s advanced visualization tools, you can create clear, visually appealing diagrams that enhance understanding and engagement. Use colors, shapes, and connectors to make your arguments more compelling.

High-Level Process Mapping: Creately allows you to map out complex arguments and ideas at a high level, breaking them down into manageable components. This makes it easier to see the logical flow and identify any gaps or weaknesses in your argument.

Interactive Templates: Start with customizable templates that are specifically designed for persuasion maps. These templates guide you through the process of organizing your thesis, supporting reasons, and evidence.

Real-Time Collaboration : Work with peers or team members simultaneously, drawing on diverse perspectives and expertise. This is perfect for academic projects or business strategy sessions.

Data-Linked Diagrams: Integrate data directly into your persuasion maps to provide backing evidence and to make your arguments more credible.

Editable Diagrams: Easily make adjustments based on feedback or evolving arguments. Creately’s user-friendly interface ensures that you can quickly tweak your diagrams without starting from scratch.

To explore more about how persuasion maps can enhance your persuasive writing, check out our other guides below.

Join over thousands of organizations that use Creately to brainstorm, plan, analyze, and execute their projects successfully.

FAQs about Persuasive Maps

What is a convincing map, what is persuasive structure, can persuasion maps be used for personal development, what is an essay map, what are argument writing graphic organizers, more related articles.

Chiraag George is a communication specialist here at Creately. He is a marketing junkie that is fascinated by how brands occupy consumer mind space. A lover of all things tech, he writes a lot about the intersection of technology, branding and culture at large.

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Guest Essay

What Polls Are Telling Us as Democrats Convene in Chicago

By Kristen Soltis Anderson

Ms. Anderson, a contributing Opinion writer, is a Republican pollster and a moderator of Opinion’s series of focus groups.

At the Democratic National Convention this week, Kamala Harris faces a challenge. She must understand and speak to voter concerns on major issues like the economy without being downbeat. She must highlight her experience as President Biden’s right-hand woman without aiding Republicans in their efforts to link her to voter frustrations with Mr. Biden’s presidency.

Essentially, she must explain why she is the right person to tackle the problems of the next four years without being defined by the past four years.

A recent ABC News-Washington Post-Ipsos poll shows why Ms. Harris needs to seize that opportunity this week. Donald Trump maintains sizable leads over his opponent when voters are asked which candidate they trust more to handle the economy, inflation and immigration. If there’s any question about what issues the campaigns think will define the race in battleground states like Georgia, look no further than the ads being aired in the Atlanta media market: a flurry of spots about Ms. Harris’s record on the economy and immigration from both campaigns.

Yes, despite all her momentum, Ms. Harris has work to do on these issues, and normally it would be a bad sign for voters to say they think you aren’t very influential in the administration in which you serve. Yet in an environment in which voters, just a few months ago, were much more likely to say they’d benefited from Mr. Trump’s policies than from Mr. Biden’s, the ability to chart your own course as a candidate is valuable, and Ms. Harris has this blessing in disguise: In the ABC-Post poll, only 33 percent of Americans said that Ms. Harris has had “a great deal” or “a good amount” of influence over the Biden administration’s economic policies, and just 39 percent say the same of Ms. Harris on immigration. So far, Republicans’ efforts to highlight Ms. Harris’s early role as Mr. Biden’s point person on tackling drivers of migration across the southern border don’t seem to have had the kind of effect they want — probably need — it to.

Ms. Harris remains, for the moment, something of a blank slate to many voters. According to the latest CBS News-YouGov polling, more than one in three voters say they don’t know what Ms. Harris stands for, far more than say that about Mr. Trump. (The Democratic Party itself seemed to be behind the times, putting out a platform just before the convention that repeatedly referred to a Biden second term.)

Indeed, the most recent shifts in the race seem to be much more about voters’ changing attitudes toward Ms. Harris than any re-evaluation of Mr. Trump. In the ABC-Post poll, Mr. Trump has actually gained a point since July, when he was at 43 percent in a multicandidate field including Biden; today he is at 44 percent in a field that includes Ms. Harris and others. Nevertheless, Mr. Trump went from a slim one-point margin over Mr. Biden to a three-point deficit to Ms. Harris, with the vice president seemingly absorbing a chunk of voters who may have previously been undecided or leaning toward a third-party candidate.

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