7 tips for persuasive writing that gets people to act

6 minute read

Last update: January 2023

Over the course of my career, I’ve been asked many times for advice on how to write. One important question that often comes up is: ‘how do you write something that inspires people to act?’

There are many types of writing. But as a copywriter, I’m usually trying to persuade people to take action, or to influence the way they think. For charities, who I do most of my work for, this is crucial. They rely on people’s active support, not just to raise money, but to build movements aiming to achieve social change.

The good news is, there’s no big mystery to writing persuasively: it’s a skill that you can learn just like any other. These are my top tips for writing copy that gets results.

1. Know your call to action

In today’s content-driven world, it’s easy to get caught up writing something new without really understanding why. Before you put pen to paper (or your fingers to the keyboard), take a moment to set out your aims.

What do you want your readers to think and know about you? How do you want them to feel? And crucially, what do you want them to do? Donate? Volunteer? Sign a petition? Whatever your ask, work out how you’ll communicate it in simple terms.

It’s okay to repeat it too! It’s a sad truth that most people will only remember two or three things from your carefully crafted words. One of those should be your call to action.

2. Identify your audience

It’s hard to be really persuasive if you don’t know who you’re talking to.

It might be tempting to define your audience as ‘the general public’ – and it would be wonderful to think you could convince everyone in one fell swoop. But we humans are a complicated bunch, and what gets one person’s attention won’t always resonate with the next. So you’ll want to narrow down your target audience.

Look again at your call to action. Who is most likely to be interested? Who can influence the decision to act? Who is most in need of the information you have to deliver?

Demographic traits like age, gender, wealth, education, and location might come into play, or you may need to do some more detailed targeting. A campaign to help people manage type 1 diabetes, for example, will have limited relevance for people who aren’t living with the condition, or don’t know someone who is.

3. Understand their motivations

Now you know who you’re talking to, you need to know what motivates them. Is it self-interest? Altruism? Curiosity? Something else entirely? Getting a handle on your reader's motivations will help you understand how to tap into them.

Oxfam’s home page, for instance, speaks to people who want to feel part of a larger social group. It does this partly through its use of case studies from around the world, but also through its choice of language, with words like “we”, “together”, and “global movement”.

If you’re wondering how to find out what motivates your target audience, well, the best way is to ask them! You could run a survey, hold focus groups, or use a co-design process. If the audience is one you talk to a lot, remember the insight you’ve gained through your daily conversations is hugely valuable too.

As well as thinking about their needs and desires, you’ll also need to know where they get their information and who they trust to deliver it. All this will help you develop your message and refine your call to action.

4. Remove barriers

The flipside of knowing what motivates someone is understanding what might put them off. Think of all the reasons your reader might resist your message: perhaps they don’t know who to trust, are concerned about cost or practicalities, or can’t see the relevance for their lives. You’ll need to reassure them that their worries are unfounded.

A word of warning though: be careful of inadvertently reinforcing the objection. For instance, if your reader worries that an activity will be difficult and time-consuming, you could say:

“It’s not difficult and won’t take too much of your time.”

But you might risk drawing more attention to the potential problem and sowing a seed of doubt: just how difficult will it be? And how much of my time is needed, exactly? Instead, try flipping the perspective and emphasising the positives:

“We make it quick and easy to take part.”

5. Show the impact

If you want to persuade, it helps to have evidence. Asking for donations to give abandoned pets a home is a clear call to action. Stating how many pets you’ve rehomed already shows you can deliver on your promise.

But to help people understand exactly how their donation will make a difference, you need to go a step further. That means appealing to their emotions, as well as their rational side.

What does a secure home mean for those pets? What do their new owners say about the impact for their family? Specific examples that show how your reader’s support could transform a life allows them to see the real value of taking action.

Never assume the benefits of what you do are obvious to everyone. Asking ‘so what?’ is a great way to test whether the impact is clear.

6. Get the language and tone right

Your readers probably have other calls on their time – so you’ll need to work to hold their attention.

When it comes to language, that means keeping it simple:

• Unless you’re talking to a very specialist audience, it’s best to steer clear of jargon.

• Avoid very long sentences and complex, obscure word choices that will slow your reader down.

• Keep your meaning clear, cut words you don’t need, and use the active voice where you can.

For the right topic, some audiences might allow you to have fun with your language or adopt an irreverent tone. But for others, you may want to drop the slang and keep your tone relatively formal – though you can still look for words that grab attention. Once again, knowing who your reader is, and how they talk, will help you avoid a misstep.

7. Evaluate

When you’re busy, it’s easy to skip this step – but it pays to make it a habit. Decide at the outset how you’ll know if you’ve achieved your goals, and take the time to look back. Did you reach the people you wanted to? Did your message hit home, or did it fall flat? Did people take the action you asked them to?

Be prepared to get it wrong – no-one has a 100% success rate! But each time you fall short of your target, you’ll have an opportunity to learn and improve for next time.

Like everything, it’s about practice. The more you write, and the more you listen to feedback, the better you’ll get.

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If you found this helpful, download my 1-page printable checklist below and tackle your next writing task with confidence. And if you could use some tailored copywriting support for an upcoming project, just get in touch to see how I could help.