12 Powerful Ways to Persuade Your Reviewers
The art of persuasion eludes many scientific and medical writers. They believe that they need to use hyperboles and adjectives like “cutting-edge” and “novel” to be persuasive. But these phrases only inflate writing and degrade credibility.
To persuade effectively, you need more than a few embellished words or phrases. You need to create strong overall content that influences and motivates your readers.
In science and medicine, persuasive writing is research-based content that encourages others to see your point of view on a topic or discussion. In general, you need to make a claim and support that claim with facts, logic, and research. And you need to write those details in a compelling way.
Fortunately, you can learn to write persuasively. Here are 12 techniques to help you master the art of persuasive writing.
1. Hook your reader
We often hear the advice “hook your reader.” And with good reason. You have only a few seconds to entice readers to continue reading. You might start with a question, a startling statistic, or an eye-catching phrase. These openers might seem unusual in scientific and medical writing, but they can be a great way for your writing to immediately stand out.
2. Set the tone
How you write is just as important as what you write. You can write a sentence with the same meaning in 10 different ways, and each way will invoke a different reaction in your reader. Do you want them to feel excited? Curious? Inspired? Motivated?
Tone helps you control how your reader feels and reacts. It breathes life into your words and is a magical part of persuasive writing.
3. Use engaging storytelling
Storytelling is a powerful way to communicate information and engage your reader. By engaging your readers’ minds and emotions, you are practicing the art of persuasion. Bring your ideas and facts alive by taking your readers on a journey. Create an emotional connection with your reader by gaining their sympathy, evoking their excitement, and garnering their support. This approach will help you to paint a picture that your readers can visualize and connect with.
4. Research your audience
Know your audience! Scientific and medical writing can target many types of readers. For example, federal grants are often read by experts in your field, whereas foundation grants may be read by donors or community members. You must be aware of what parts of your claim or argument your readers will connect with. What information will engage them emotionally? What details will compel them to support your argument? By knowing your audience, you can tailor your writing to respond to your readers’ specific needs and perspectives.
5. Clearly organize your ideas
A crucial part of persuasion is writing out your ideas in a clear, organized way. Clunky or confusing writing can undo even the best arguments. You want to logically guide your readers through your story. Remember to use effective transitions between topics and paragraphs. When your readers can easily follow your train of thought, they will more easily support your assertions.
6. Use strong, active language
When your writing shows confidence, your readers will feel confident about your claim—and you. By using strong verbs and active voice, you can add a compelling tone to your writing that exudes confidence. Passive voice strips this confidence away by weakening your claim, disengaging your readers, and increasing your word count. With active voice, you can be direct and concise, get to the point, focus your readers’ attention, state your claims clearly, achieve greater impact, and persuade!
7. Use short, pointed statements
Using short, concise sentences can be a powerful way to make a memorable and persuasive statement. Scientific and medical writers tend to write in medium to long sentences. But when you mix long and short sentences, the short sentences stand out in a direct, compelling way. Short sentences are also easier for readers to understand and retain. Some writers might struggle to write shorter sentences, but you can pack a powerful punch that will engage and entice your reader.
8. Capture attention with rhetorical questions
Rhetorical questions are a great way to draw attention. These questions are not meant to be answered. They are meant to make your reader think. For example, before explaining your rationale, you might ask your reader, “What does this mean?” Or before explaining your approach, you might ask, “How will we do that?” These rhetorical questions can engage your reader in your thought process.
Keep in mind that these questions can increase your word count. If you’re up against a deadline and need to cut a few words, these questions can usually be deleted easily without losing meaning.
9. Address the counter-argument
When writing about a topic with conflicting points of view, you will inevitably find at least one argument that counters your claim. By addressing these potential arguments, you can clarify and strengthen your claim.
One challenge in addressing counter-arguments is limited space. Scientific and medical writers often face word or page limits. Do not waste valuable words by describing different sides of an argument at length. When you need to make a counter-argument, such as when your claim conflicts with well-established research, keep your discussion concise.
10. Select your sources wisely
To write persuasively, you must substantiate your claim. While your writing will likely focus on your original ideas, you need to support those ideas with credible sources. These sources must be reliable, plausible, and trusted. With these sources, you can share knowledge, clearly show the gap that your research fills, distinguish your work, and provide context to support your claim.
11. Illustrate your point
When choosing your sources, look for illustrations that you can use to support your claim. There are three main types of illustrations: statistics, examples, and expert opinions.
Statistics
Statistics are most convincing when they are used sparingly and combined with an explanation of why the numbers are significant. When discussing statistics, remember to identify and credit the source of the data (your work or that of others), summarize them succinctly, and plainly state what the results mean.
Examples
Examples have two main benefits. First, they can provide details that support a claim, such as explaining complex ideas, bolstering your conclusions, or demonstrating current practices. But more powerfully, examples can create a vivid description that captures and retains your reader’s attention. When using an example, share it in a way that spells out why the example is relevant to your claim.
Expert opinion
Expert opinions can be a valuable way to support your claim. But you must understand that expert opinions are not facts. They are interpretations of facts. For example, two experts can draw different conclusions from the same data. In this way, expert opinions are not as reliable as facts or examples.
12. Present with patterns
Patterns help to organize your arguments. They can be used to build on what readers already know, help readers compare facts, or present information in a logical way.
Below are eight common patterns that you can use to present your argument.
Chronological
The chronological pattern arranges information according to time, either forward or backward. This format works well when a topic is most clearly presented in terms of segments of time. Common patterns include historical descriptions or dividing topics based on past-present-future or before-during-after.
Sequential
The sequential pattern arranges information according to a step-by-step sequence. This approach works well when describing a process that follows a specific series of steps in a particular order.
Spatial
The spatial pattern arranges information according to how things fit together in physical space. This pattern works well when you want to create a mental picture of something that distinguishes parts by physical location, such as geography or location in a cell.
Compare-contrast
The compare-contrast pattern arranges information according to how things are similar to or different from one another. This format can help your reader better understand a subject as it relates to something else.
Advantages-disadvantages
The advantages-disadvantages pattern organizes information according to pros and cons, or good and bad parts. This approach is helpful when you want to objectively discuss both sides of an issue.
Cause-effect
The cause-effect pattern shows important relationships between two things or conditions. This pattern is effective when you want to show how one thing influences another thing or when you want to advocate for an action to solve a problem.
Problem-solution
The problem-solution pattern divides information into two parts: a problem and a solution to solve that problem. This format works well when you want to compel the reader to support a certain action or make a change.
Topical
The topical pattern is the most used format. This approach arranges information according to sub-topics within a larger topic, or as things that fall within a larger category. For example, you might use this pattern to discuss types of drugs used to treat a particular condition, or to talk about different components of a protein complex.
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