Master the Art of Convincing with Your Persuasive Essay: Top Tips

There are plenty of conspiracy theories circling around the net – aliens in Area 51 or that the Queen is a lizard. Now that's all wacky and fun, but let's be honest – the videos can be pretty convincing. This is because the people making these videos use special techniques to mess with evidence and convince you that their ridiculous ideas are valid. In a nutshell, this is the goal of persuasive writing.

This article will guide you on how to write a good persuasive essay. We will discuss topics and create an outline and arguments to persuade readers. Be sure to stick around for persuasive essay examples near the end, which you can download and use from our custom writing service for your reference.

What Is a Persuasive Writing

Persuasive writing is a common writing technique taught to students early on in school. This is an interesting and fun type of writing that strives to create a debate on a given topic. This writing technique challenges students to take a clear stance on a specific topic or cause and use compelling argument/s to persuade readers that the author's position is correct.

Now, what is a persuasive essay itself? According to the persuasive essay definition, it is a form of academic writing task, often assigned to students at schools, colleges, and universities, to persuade readers that a specific point of view is correct.

When forming a persuasive essay, students must thoroughly research the given topic, analyze it, and take a solid argumentative position. Then, with the help of logical arguments and convincing words, a student is expected to dispel biases and assure readers that there are no correct points of view other than the authors.

Why Is Persuasive Writing Important?

Persuasive papers are a common assignment in schools and colleges because they help keep students engaged and more involved in their classwork. Additionally, writing this type of assignment helps develop various essential skills, including research, critical thinking, the ability to form evidence-based conclusions, etc.

Argumentative vs Persuasive Essay

A persuasive essay is often referred to as an argumentative essay. This can create an illusion that these types of works are the same and can cause confusion. However, there is a difference between argumentative and persuasive writing approaches.

Although both writing styles aim to persuade readers of a certain position through logic and argument, a persuasive piece often appeals to readers' emotions in addition to giving them the facts. To persuade the reader of your point of view while simultaneously dealing with their emotions, you must employ compelling reasons in your persuasive essay.

You might also be interested in discovering what a process essay is and how to write one.

Persuasive Essay Format

The basic requirements for a persuasive paper are as follows:

• Fonts: Times New Roman or another easy-to-read font like Georgia or Arial
• Font Size: 16pt for the headline(s) and 12pt for the rest of the text
• Alignment: justified
• Spacing: double, or in some cases, 1.5
• Word count: as a rule, from 500 to 2000 words—check your teacher's guidelines to learn what word count applies to you

The List of Topics and How to Pick One

When thinking of persuasive essay ideas, choosing a topic with many contrasting opinions is best. Broad issues such as gun control and abortion rights can spawn novel-length essays. These best are avoided unless you're writing a dissertation.

Say you want to argue in favor of space exploration. It perfectly fits the description of a widely explored contemporary subject. Creating a structure where every body paragraph explores a different planet might be too much. Why not narrow it down and argue about building a base on the moon? This way, you can convince the audience of the benefits of creating a moon base and give them a small idea of what can be achieved from space exploration on a larger scale.

Hence, you have persuaded your reader on a small topic connected to a much broader one. This will leave them inspired with plenty of thoughts to feast on, allowing them to dive further into the world of space.

Remember This When Picking a Topic

The main focus of persuasive essays is the point of view. It's important to choose issues that you are knowledgeable about or that you can defend or refute. The best persuasive essays ever written use personal experiences to draw attention to significant social issues that most readers have chosen to overlook. Consider A Letter from Birmingham Prison by Martin Luther King Jr. or Women's Rights are Human Rights by Hillary Clinton as examples.

Topics for High School

Perhaps space exploration is long and tedious and makes your stomach turn. Don't worry — you can come up with plenty of simple persuasive essay topics for high school. Perhaps you have already debated some of these with your friends:

• Schools should restrict the use of tablets in the classroom, as it distracts students and causes difficulty in learning.
• The Velvet Underground is the most important and influential American rock band ever.
• Explain why advertisements should be banned from social media.
• Due to growing environmental concerns, eating meat should be banned within the next five years.
• Historically, businessmen in positions of power are a bad idea.

Topics for College

Persuasive essay topics for college get a bit more complicated. The finest essay subjects address moral, ethical, technical, and sustainability concerns while considering current events. Through their work, students can significantly change society and bravely give the past a fresh lease on life. For college, it is best to choose controversial persuasive essay topics. They challenge the writer to engage in relevant intellectual issues. Here are some examples:

• Media marketed for teenagers advertise morally and ethically wrong messages.
• Federal courtrooms must have live cameras that televise all trials.
• Beauty contests should not be encouraged.
• With the information available online, college education should be made significantly cheaper.
• Create a prisoner rehabilitation system using music and art.
• Arguing in favor of Net Neutrality.

Persuasive Essay Outline

Writing an outline is a big step for writing persuasive essays. An outline helps to get your thoughts well-organized and makes the writing process simpler.To write persuasive essays, you must first create an outline. Your thoughts will be more structured with an outline, facilitating writing.

There are three basic components to a typical persuasive essay format, which is relatively similar to other essays: an introduction, a body, and a conclusion. Every component has a specific function in the text. You must follow the persuasive essay format and cite it according to one of the common citation styles, such as APA or MLA.

Here is a brief note on what each part of this paper consists of and what purpose each part has:

1. How to write a persuasive essay introduction?
   Employ a strong hook for persuasive essay that draws the reader in and introduces the subject. After that, give some background information on the topic you'll be discussing. Last, incorporate a clear thesis statement expressing your position on the subject and summarizing the key arguments you'll bring up throughout the body paragraphs.
2. How to write a persuasive essay main body?
   Each body paragraph should begin with a topic sentence that enhances your argument. Present evidence, such as data or professional opinions, to support your claim. Finally, describe how the proof backs up your claim. Recognize and respond to any potential objections to your position. Lastly, provide the following point in the sentence that concludes each paragraph.
3. How to write a persuasive essay conclusion?
   Summarize the key arguments and restate your thesis for persuasive essay in new words. You might conclude by urging the reader to act or continue to think about the subject. Finally, leave the reader with a last idea or comment that makes an impact.

To give you a better idea of how to write an outline for a persuasive essay, here is a template for persuasive essay on the topic 'Are Women Weaker Than Men Today':

1. Introduction

• Hook: 'In the 21st century, women are more than housewives.'
• Background Info: 'For ages, the debate on whether women are weaker or stronger than men has not faded.'
• Thesis: 'The era of male dominance has come to an end. Today women can do and be pretty much everything men can.'

2. Main Body

• Argument #1: The strength of a woman from a family perspective + supporting facts, stats, and evidence
• Argument #2: The strength from a work perspective + supporting facts, stats, and evidence
• Argument #3: The strength from a society perspective + supporting facts, stats, and evidence

3. Conclusion

• Summary of all arguments
• Thesis restatement: 'Women were perceived as the weaker sex for centuries. However, looking at modern women's examples today, we can mark this statement as false.'
• Food for thought: 'Over the past decades, women worldwide have proven that they can do anything a man can and succeed. Their success is the best indicator of their strength. And, even though there is nothing else to prove, women are still seeking to take a more active role in modern society.'

How to Use Arguments in Persuasive Essays

How to start a persuasive essay: first and foremost, you must understand the basic principles of persuasive writing to write an effective paper. Your main goal is to make readers accept and agree with your opinion. The only way to do it is by supporting your ideas with credible, reasonable, and convincing argument/s. You will also have to use emotional appeal and logic. Your text's right blend of rational and emotional elements makes it persuasive.

Now, let's get back to the basic elements of persuasive writing. Aristotle describes three elements of rhetoric that you should keep at the core of your writing:

• Ethos: an element that appeals to an author's credibility. It implies that readers will trust your opinion because they find you a credible author. If you don't have your ethos yet (meaning you are not a proven expert in a specific field), you can refer to opinions stated by credible organizations and personas. In this case, their ethos will help your arguments sound more solid.

Example: The National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America has conducted a study that has shown that women can survive for longer than men under extreme conditions such as epidemics, famines, enslavement, etc.

• Pathos: an element that appeals to emotions. The trick is to focus on the audience's values, morals, and beliefs and use them to: provoke the needed emotions and promote an agreement with the idea you have stated.

Example: This is a man's world, but where would we all be without a woman? A woman is a person that gives birth to us, a person who guides each of us through this world, and a person who inspires and motivates us. How can such a person be called weak?

• Logos: an element that appeals to reasoning. The last basic principle of persuasive writing, Logos, implies using evidence and logic to assure readers agree with your opinion.

Example: Numerous studies have confirmed that women are mentally stronger than men in numerous domains of cognition.

How to Shape a Powerful Persuasive Argument

Here are a few basic tips to help you generate convincing arguments for your paper:

• Research. You must be very well-informed about the chosen topic to form solid and convincing points. Research it thoroughly using trusted sources, collect expert opinions, and find facts.
• Make sure there are two sides to your topic. Your thesis must have two sides – the one with which you agree and the one you will oppose. You cannot create a good persuasive argument if the chosen topic is not debatable.
• Understand the contrasting opinion. Another vital factor in shaping powerful arguments is being able to understand the opposite position and being able to find solid counter arguments to disprove it.
• Use evidence. Finally, remember that a persuasive argument will look incomplete and invalid if you lack sufficient convincing evidence to support it.

How to Support Your Argument

As you already know how to shape a good argument, let's look at the different ways to support it:

1. Statistics – an excellent way to support your ideas is to use all sorts of statistics. As a rule, stats look very convincing in the general context. However, be sure to only provide valid statistics from credible sources.

Example: Today, women represent 18% of the officer corps and about 16% of the enlisted military forces in the US, reinforcing that women can do anything men can.

2. Facts – proven facts are powerful means of persuasion for which you can rely on your paper.

Example: According to studies, when it comes to longevity, women are more likely to survive illness and cope with trauma.

3. Examples – providing examples from real life (including your own experiences), literature, or history can help enhance the effect of your persuasive paper and provide good support for your arguments.

Example: Angela Merkel, Chancellor of Germany, is a true, real-life example of a woman's strength. Merkel had the strength to enter the world of politics and compete against men. She has proven to the world that a woman can be a good politician. It is not without reason that she has held the first spot in Forbes' list of the most powerful women in the world for nine years in a row.

4. Quotes – another excellent way to support your ideas is to provide direct quotes that reflect the opinions of trusted and credible personas.

Example: 'To call woman the weaker sex is a libel; it is man's injustice to woman. If by strength, brute strength is meant, then indeed, a woman is less brute than a man. If moral power is meant by strength, then the woman is immeasurably man's superior. Has she not greater intuition, is she not more self-sacrificing, has she not greater powers of endurance, has she not greater courage? Without her, man could not be. If nonviolence is the law of our being, the future is with a woman. Who can make a more effective appeal to the heart than woman?' - Mahatma Gandhi

How to Write a Persuasive Essay: Step-by-Step

Once assigned to write a persuasive paper, many students make the mistake of heading straight to writing the essay, whereas some preparational steps shouldn't be skipped.

Here is a complete step-by-step guide that will help you navigate through the whole process:

Take a Stance

To get started, you need to define a clear position. To decide which side you will support, look at both sides of the topic and determine which one appeals to you and your personal beliefs. Also, don't forget to research to ensure you have enough evidence to back your ideas.

Research

When you have established your position, you may continue to delve further into your subject. To develop compelling arguments, you must thoroughly know the subject.

When conducting your research, be careful with choosing your sources – they must be valid and trustworthy. Also, don't forget to take notes of the most interesting facts, stats, examples, and quotes. Later they will come in handy to back your arguments.

Evaluate and Prioritize Evidence

In the research, you will probably come across various proofs. Unfortunately, there is no way you can fit them all into a single paper. That's why your next step is to assess the collected evidence and identify the strongest facts that will add the most value to your work.

Make a Clear Outline

Use the tips and examples mentioned earlier to form a detailed and clear outline for your paper. A persuasive essay outline will help you cover all of the important details and ensure you won't get lost in the writing process.

Write Your First Draft

After setting the outline for your essay, start writing the rough draft. However, before you rush into it, consider looking through a few good persuasive writing examples to understand how it should look.

When writing, make sure to stick to the outline. It will assist you in maintaining a logical organization for your arguments.

Proofread and Edit Your Paper

Finally, the last steps to success are proofreading and editing. We recommend giving yourself a few days off after writing to restore your energy and get back to proofreading with a rested and fresh mind.

Remember that proofreading and editing is not just about detecting and fixing grammar mistakes. During this phase, you ought to find any areas for improvement in your paper and polish them.

Tips for Persuasive Writing

With all that being said, here are some final tips for writing a great persuasive essay:

1. Avoid fancy vocabulary. Having some variety when it comes to vocabulary is fine, but don't expect your grade to be better because of some fancy synonyms. Find your style and write in a way that makes sense.
2. Make logical transitions between different parts of your paper. Be sure to make your paper smooth and easy to read.
3. Experiment with different persuasive writing techniques. We listed some of the basic elements of persuasive writing in this article, but even more are found in countless different mediums.
4. Triple-check your work! Practice makes perfect, and so does proofreading. Check the assignment for readability, logic, style, tone of voice, etc. Make sure that everything flows in harmony with the thesis. Get a second pair of eyes by giving your essay to a friend for reading!
5. Ask the right questions. After you have written and proofread your paper, take some time to ask yourself the following questions:

• Did I follow the teacher's guidelines?
• Did I answer the main question provided in the task (if any)?
• Is my essay structured well?
• Is the text clear and coherent?
• Is my choice of words throughout the paper good?
• Did I provide enough supporting evidence for my ideas?
• Is my paper free of errors?
• Can I further improve the quality of my paper?
• Does it look convincing?

This simple checklist will help you ensure that your persuasive essay is flawless. If you are overwhelmed with the tasks, feel free to contact us 24/7. Just leave us a message 'write my paper.'

Persuasive Essay Examples

Check out our persuasive essay examples below to get a better understanding of writing this type of paper.

Persuasive Essay Example: Are Women Weaker Than Men Today?

This is an example of a well-structured persuasive essay from our economic essay writing service. The author challenges the assumption that women are weaker than men and provides evidence to support his claim.

The question of whether women are weaker than men has often elicited raging debates, with conservationists arguing that women are certainly weaker than men. The converse is, however, true, and if the 21st-century woman is to be taken as an example, women are certainly as strong as men, if not stronger, across all comparable platforms. The era of male dominance came to an end with the rise of feminine power, and gone are the days when men were the more dominant of the human species. As the saying goes, "what men can do, women can do better," the women of today can do almost everything men can do and as just as good.

Persuasive Essay Example: Should People Who Download Music and Movies Illegally Be Punished?

This persuasive essay example from our essay service uses source material well and addresses a contemporary issue. The writer challenges the idea of online piracy and argues that sharing media has become a norm in society.

The United States government came up with the Copyright Act of 1976 to protect the works of art by different artists. The act outlines the punishable felonies concerning authenticity; for instance, illegally downloading music from the internet is a punishable offense. In addition, it sets specific fines for committing such crimes; for example, it says that one could pay a fine of up to $ 30,000 per piece of work (Burrell & Coleman, n.d.). Therefore, though downloading songs freely from the internet could sound normal, it is a felony. However, some questions exist on whether this act is worth the penalties. For this reason, a critical analysis of the transgression will determine whether or not it merits the charges.

This persuasive essay example from our essay service makes good use of source material and addresses a contemporary issue. The writer challenges the idea of online piracy, and argues that sharing media has become a norm in society.

See also our informative essay examples, perhaps they will be useful to you.

Final Words

Consider clauses used in a persuasive essay, including presenting solid evidence, acknowledging opposing arguments, and employing transitional words to link concepts in your paper. It is also critical to understand how to create a hook for a persuasive essay to grab the reader's interest and establish the essay's tone. These strategies enable students to produce persuasive essays that convince readers to agree with their particular point of view.

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