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How to write a persuasive essay

To know how to write a persuasive essay, one must understand the importance of how the structure of the essay is essential to its effectiveness as a persuasive device. It must have a clear introduction, a well thought-out main body and provide a convincing conclusion.

The persuasive essay must outline the writer’s opinion on a certain subject or topic, but ultimately it must persuade the reader to agree with the writer’s reasoning and points of view.

Before you write your persuasive essay, it is vital that you establish who exactly your target audience will be. If you are aiming to convince a reader who subscribes to a vastly opposite viewpoint you may wish to write in a more abrasive tone than if your were focusing on persuading a more casual reader.

Writing a persuasive essay

A good persuasive essay will indicate instantly the issue at hand that the paper is dealing with, in addition to the nature of the writer’s opinion. This element is often communicated in what is known as the thesis statement.

Take for example: ‘The salty, processed foods that are currently served in schools are detrimental to the health and well-being of our nation’s youth.’ This thesis statement instantly indicates the problem at hand, i.e. that processed food is damaging, whilst also clearly defining the opinion of the writer and the stance that shall be taken throughout the whole essay.

In the main body of the persuasive essay, one must present information that backs up the thesis statement as set in the introduction. The main body should include relevant statistics, facts, examples, testimonies and research to support all statements made in persuading the reader into believing the point-of-view of the writer.

The subject of your persuasive essay will naturally have at least one, or possibly multiple, opposing view points. If you are to be assertive in your delivery of your argument you must not allow your essay to display a justifiable argument against your own point-of-view. It is possible, however, to distinguish conflicting arguments against your own point-of-view to create a counterargument to further assert your case.

For example, ‘Although processed foods are inexpensive, they contain levels of salt that can be harmful to a child’s health.’ By contesting any opposing judgements you add valuable credibility to your line of reasoning.

When concluding your persuasive essay, you are given the opportunity to reiterate and summarise all of your points that you have made throughout the main body of your work. It is therefore important that your arguments are logically structured and sequenced so that they can seamlessly lead into the conclusion.

Assuming your persuasive essay has successfully convinced the reader, then you may wish to recommend ways to take action by making a suggestion or posing a question such as: ‘What are you waiting for?’ An informed prediction of how the subject will change for the worse unless action is made, or perhaps using relevant quotations from key figures, one can also add further insight into a the subject at hand.


Writing a persuasive essay does not have to be difficult!