How to Persuade An Audience

A letter to the editor of a newspaper, speech, or proposal is a form of persuasive writing. People write them to convince their audience that some kind of action is needed. To write something convincing, it is important to think about the audience. Think about their beliefs, values, and attitudes and be sure to use appropriate tone and reading level. Do not alienate them! For example, do not begin by criticizing the actions of the agency or organization you are trying to persuade. Do not use obscenities or slang or wild assumptions that will make people dismiss your ideas.

Persuasive Writing: Although a persuasive piece of writing should be based on concrete evidence and strong supporting reasons, it is also designed to convince or persuade. Some of the techniques in Detecting Bias may be useful in persuasive writing. Be careful not to be excessive when writing to persuade... or you may turn off your audience.

• Selection and omission: When you are writing to persuade, you do not have to use all the information available to you. For example, if you have some information that does not support your proposal, leave it out! If you are writing to your school board to convince them not to use pesticides on your school grounds, you do not need to use the information that the pesticide is manufactured by a local company that will lose business if it loses the contract to the school board. Concentrate on the prevailing issue, which is the negative environmental impact and possible health risks to children.
  
• Emotional language: You are trying to convince your audience on a course of action. Use their feelings! Just be sure not to sound irrational or you may lose credibility.
  
• Convincing arguments: Think about what might influence your audience. Public opinion? Losing or making money? Sustainability? Ideology? Use whatever works!
  
• Catch their interest: Headlines, photos, videos, and quotations from authorities or celebrities might be helpful.