by Elton Gahr

Created on: May 27, 2009

Trying to change the opinion of someone is never easy and it can become more difficult in written form when you don't have the chance to answer the questions that inevitably pop up as you present your case. Yet if you work hard you can create a persuasive article that will at least make the person think even if they don't agree with you at the end.

The most important thing you must do if you want to convince someone of your point is to get them to read the article. This may seem like common sense but far too many articles that are meant to be persuasive fail miserably at this most basic point. So the first thing you must remember is that most people aren't going to read a persuasive article that begins by insulting them. This comes in many forms but most often in the assumption that there is only one reasonable point of view and anyone who disagrees with that hasn't thought the idea through. Even if this is true telling someone that is an bad idea.

Another perfect way to get someone to put down the article is to inaccurately represent their point of view. Be extremely careful when stating any point of view that you avoid stereotyping the opposing idea. Even if someone told you that they believe something you must be careful not to assume that is the reason everyone does. There are many different reasons people come to conclusions. Phrases like "A common belief is" or "One reason for this" are your friends because you can give the points of the opposing argument without driving away those who hold that belief for a different reason.

Understanding the opposing point of view is the most important thing that your research can do. The odds are high that you already understand why you believe something, they are also high that you don't really understand why someone else believes the opposite. Do everything you can to empathies with the point of view you are trying to convince because if you can't at least meet them half way you're never going to bring them the rest of the way.

Finally, you must make sure to answer all the logical questions. Think through all of your arguments and try to find all the questions people will have. Have someone else read the article and tell you if you missed anything. A single unanswered point can completely undermine your argument. This is doubly upsetting because often, there is a simple and obvious answer that would have taken only a couple words to give.

The most important thing you can do when writing a persuasive argument is to understand the argument fully from both sides. Without the ability to look at an idea logically you will never be able to give a logical explanation of why your idea is the superior one.

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