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How to write a persuasive speech

By BBC Maestro Writing Lifestyle Business Last updated: 13 October 2023

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Martin Luther King Jr’s “I have a dream”. William Churchill’s “We will fight on the beaches”. Malala Yousafzai's "I am here to stand up for their rights, to raise their voice". These are three of the most famous speeches ever – and their long-lasting impact is down to how persuasive they are.

If you want to follow in their footsteps, here’s everything you need to know about how to write a persuasive speech.

What makes a persuasive speech?

The very notion of public speaking is enough to strike fear into the heart of most people. But it doesn’t need to be scary – and dispelling that thought is the first step to writing a persuasive speech. After all, no one was ever convinced by someone who wasn’t confident about their subject.

Don’t believe it? Take it from Richard Greene, who’s dedicated his career to helping people overcome their fear of public speaking. It’s easier to deliver a speech, he says, if you remember that it’s not about you. 

As he explains in his BBC Maestro course, Public Speaking and Communication, “the real reason for public speaking is to provide value to the people standing or sitting in front of you.”

Once you remember that, it’s easier to deliver a speech that’s less nerve-wracking and more impactful.

But what exactly, makes someone a persuasive speaker? Think again about those famous speeches from Martin Luther King Jr, William Churchill and Malala Yousafzai. What makes them so persuasive?

Some of the common threads that run through each of them include:

• Personalisation: each speaker made the audience feel like they were talking directly to them
• Use of strong imagery and visual language
• Use of commanding yet simple-to-understand language
• Authenticity: none of these speakers were putting on an act, and it went a long way to making their speeches more powerful

Let’s take a look at these in a little more detail, to help you write a speech that’s powerful, passionate and persuasive.

Know your topic   

It might sound obvious – after all, why would you try to deliver a speech on something you don’t know much about? But it happens more often than you might think. 

But if you don’t know your subject well, you’re more likely to be nervous about fluffing it. And if your audience knows that you’re nervous – and they will – then it’s unlikely to be a persuasive speech.

As Richard Greene says, one of the keys to a successful speech is that “you believe that there is value in the information that you are sharing.”

So, first things first – make sure that your knowledge of a topic is top-notch before even attempting to write your speech. It’ll go a long way to making it more effective and persuasive.

Speak directly to the audience   

One of the things that all the famous orators we mentioned earlier did so well was speaking directly to their audience. When writing a persuasive speech, you want to make it seem like you’re speaking directly to each and every audience member. 

As Richard Greene explains, “I want to get every single person to feel that they’re having a direct connection and direct communication with me.”

Asking questions is a great way to get your audience engaged – another great tip from Richard Greene. He suggests that you “turn the tables and ask them questions [because] questions engage the audience, questions take the pressure off the speaker.”

You could also help the audience connect to you by telling them a personal story, relating an anecdote, or simply spelling out what you’re going to tell them – and why it’s important to them. 

However you do it, connecting with your audience is key. It is, as Richard puts it, “where the transfer of energy, the transfer of enthusiasm, the transfer of information happens.”

Communicate clearly 

One big mistake that many people make when writing speeches is to make them overly verbose, or to fill them with jargon.    But if an audience doesn’t understand what you’re saying, they’ll immediately switch off – meaning that you’ll never persuade them.     One good rule of thumb is to write like you talk – and then to practice reading your speech out loud. You’ll soon spot anything that sounds odd, out of place, or difficult to understand. 

Tell a story 

Stories are powerful, and they’re a fantastic technique to use within speeches to get your point across.    Richard Greene is a big fan of stories, saying that:     “The six most powerful words a speaker can ever say to an audience is let…me…tell…you…a…story.”    He goes on to explain that “stories reach into our primal self as human beings, stories have been the primary form of communication amongst human beings for all time.”    A story is made even better when they’re filled with imagery that the audience can use to help them understand it. Think back to Martin Luther King Jr, Churchill and Malala Yousafzai – they all use powerful, visual language to tell their story and leave a lasting impression.  

Use your body as well as your words   

Body language is useful in helping you to tell your story. Whether it’s through hand gestures, eye contact, or simply the way you hold yourself, your body is an effective tool for reinforcing your message and sincerity.    But remember that your body language should make your message clearer – not more complicated. If your body language is at odds with the words you’re speaking, your audience is going to leave feeling less persuaded and more confused.    So, avoid crossing your arms or slouching which could give off the impression that you’re bored or uninterested in the subject, and instead practice standing tall and proud, and using open gestures to reiterate your points. 

Be yourself

Audiences are smart, and they’re unlikely to be fooled by someone selling trying to sell them a false narrative, or an inauthentic version of themselves.     Being yourself is one of the best shots you have at creating a real rapport with your audience. As Richard Green says, “your authenticity in the moment is what will drive your connection to the audience.”    So, once you’ve learned your subject, written your speech, and practiced it – tear it up, take a deep breath, and go out on stage as your authentic self.       These tips will help you to write a persuasive speech – but there’s lots more to learn about the art of public speaking and getting your point across, as you’ll learn in Richard Greene’s BBC Maestro course, Public Speaking and Communication . You’ll learn everything about conquering your fear of public speaking and connecting with your audience.   

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Writing Persuasively

Understanding the art of persuasion.

• Persuasive writing involves the use of rhetoric . Understand that it has the intention to convince, engage or provoke the reader into thinking or acting in a certain way.
• Study the three components of Aristotelian appeals: ethos, pathos, logos . Ethos pertains to credibility or trust, pathos to emotions and values, and logos to logical reasoning.

Identifying Your Purpose and Audience

• Determine the purpose of your persuasive piece. Is it to convince, entertain, enlighten, drive to action?
• Identify your audience . Tailor your tone, language and arguments to suit your intended reader.

Generating and Organising Your Arguments

• Use mind mapping or brainstorming to generate your arguments .
• Arrange your arguments in a logical order, normally from the least to the most compelling .
• Factor in your counter-argument. This helps strengthen your position as it shows you have fully explored the issue.

Crafting Effective Persuasive Techniques

• Learn and practise using persuasive techniques such as rhetorical questions , anecdotes , figures of speech like metaphors and similes , and powerful imperatives .
• Incorporate persuasive language that invokes feelings and values, like positive words for your arguments and negative connotations for opposing views.

Building Your Persuasive Structure

• Introduction: Clearly state your position on the issue.
• Body: Provide a separate paragraph for each argument. Each paragraph should contain a clear topic sentence, a detailed explanation, and supporting evidence.
• Address the counter-argument. Refute it using your own arguments to show that your position is the stronger one.
• Conclusion: Summarise your arguments and reiterate the importance of the issue and the necessity to adopt your viewpoint.

Reviewing and Refining Your Work

• Revisit what you have written. Are your arguments convincing and powerful ? Is your language engaging enough?
• Try to stand in the shoes of your audience and read your piece. Would you be convinced?
• Always check for grammar and spelling mistakes, and ensure that your writing flows smoothly.
• Remember to edit ruthlessly. Cut out any unnecessary words and make every sentence work towards your aim.

Resources you can trust

Writing a speech

These are user friendly KS3 resources for preparing a persuasive speech on a familiar subject. It includes ideas for topics. It would be ideal for an Argue and Persuade Writing unit. 

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Resources you might like

Persuasive Writing Guide for GCSE

This persuasive writing guide for GCSE is designed to support teachers and students of CCEA English Language Unit 1 Writing for Purpose and Audience. Despite the title ‘Writing for Purpose and Audience’, the task is assessing students’ ability to write persuasively.

I hope this guide is helpful. Scroll to the bottom to download the printable guide for your own revision notes, or to photocopy for your class.

What is persuasive writing?

Persuasive writing is a form of non-fiction writing which aims to get the reader to agree with the writer’s point of view. Writing persuasively helps students to defend an argument, an important skill for academic study, if they go on to university. It also helps to build their confidence in formulating a point of view.

Persuasive writing can also be referred to as argumentative writing or discursive writing.

What exam boards require students to do persuasive writing at GCSE?

I have mentioned already, this guide is written for my own CCEA GCSE students. 

CCEA’s English Language Unit 1 Task 1 is called ‘writing for purpose and audience’. It asks students to write a persuasive response to an unseen topic for a specific audience. The task is worth 87 marks (there are 150 marks available for the whole paper).

WJEC’s GCSE English Language Unit 3  Section B asks students to complete two persuasive writing tasks. Each one is worth 20 marks, so 40 in total (there are 80 marks available for the whole paper).

Will students know the topic, purpose and audience in advance of the exam?

For the first time in 2023, CCEA released Advanced Information for a number of subjects, including English Language GCSE. For Unit 1, CCEA told us that the audience would be your classmates. That’s it! Not much to go on! You can  look at the document here . 

WJEC also released similar information for their candidates, indicating that the focus for Unit 3 would be an article for the first task and a talk for the second. You can  check the document here .

Where do we see persuasive writing?

In the real world, we are surrounded by persuasion. We see it on billboards, in advertisements, in politics, and in many aspects of our everyday lives, such as at home or at school. If you have ever tried to convince someone to do or give you something, then you are already more than a beginner.

Political speeches

 job interviews.

Advertising

Motivational speeches.

Students will be familiar with the language of media and advertising from KS3 study. They tend to do well with this style of writing as they are using lively, exaggerated expressions and cultivating a positive relationship with their reader/audience. It can also be an emotive topic: students feel quite passionate about the topics that come up.

What topics could come up in GCSE persuasive writing?

In general, the topics students are asked to write about are topics they are familiar with. CCEA do not expect students to have memorised facts and statistics about a range of topics. Instead, they must write from their own ideas, opinions and experiences. Here are some past paper topics, and a few more that I think would be great to give to students:

• Should school uniforms be mandatory?
• Should students call their teachers by their first name?
• Should the whole world go vegan?
• Should the voting age be lowered to 16?
• Is social media harmful to young people?
• Should the legal drinking age be raised?
• Should homework be abolished?
• Is artificial intelligence ethical?
• Should junk food be banned from schools?
• Is climate change our responsibility to fix?
• Is technology making us more or less social?

Teaching ideas for persuasive writing

• Get students talking: debate the topics
• Double up the same written practice tasks with speaking and listening assessment (individual)
• Use a  random name selector (try this one)  to select topics and get students to persuade their partners for 30 seconds
• Watch famous  persuasive speeches – try this site.  Annotate and discuss what works. This is a great lead into Unit 3 Study of Spoken Language CA

What do students find difficult about persuasive writing?

1. getting the right tone.

A big part of the CCEA assessment is matching the style and tone of your writing to the audience. Sometimes the audience is your classmates but it could also be the examiner, the school community or a specific situation, for example a Primary 6 class. Students need to vary their tone, vocabulary and content to suit the audience. 

I find that some students struggle to balance the need for formality (it’s an English exam) with a casual tone (to suit their classmates, for example). This takes practice for most students.

2. Writing accurately

As with all written tasks, students are assessed on a range of skills, but approximately a third of the marks in the CCEA, and half in WJEC, are awarded for accuracy of spelling, punctuation and grammar, vocabulary and sentence structure, etc. 

3. Using a range of language devices to make the writing lively

A big part of the assessment of quality in this task is in the students’ ability to manipulate language to persuade. There are many mnemonics for persuasive language devices. Here’s mine: PASS ME A FOREST. 

4. Developing detail

This task requires students to plan and take a well structured approach. The written response needs an introduction, main paragraphs which outline the main arguments and a conclusion. Each of the main paragraphs needs a clear point/topic sentence, giving the response a range of persuasive ideas. The CCEA task is allocated 55 minutes. There is an expectation of length: three sides of exam paper are included in the exam booklet. The best responses will be concise enough not to waffle on, but well developed enough to use the space to fully convince the reader.

I hope you found this guide useful. Let me know what else I can add, or what I have left out! 

Download the guide here:

Check out the rest of the Persuasive Writing mini-series:

Exploring persuasive writing

Part of English Non-fiction Year 5 Year 6

Watch: What is persuasive writing?

When you persuade someone in your writing, your aim is to get them to agree with your point of view.

Watch this video where teacher Mr Smith explores persuasive writing and gives you some examples of when it’s used.

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How is persuasive language effective? Watch this Teacher Talk to learn more.

Using persuasive writing

• You could place some of the examples of persuasive writing in more than one row in the table.

To check your answers, you can use this answer sheet .

More on Non-fiction

Find out more by working through a topic

Writing to inform: Maps, charts and presentations

• count 11 of 18

Exploring biographies

• count 12 of 18

Biographies and autobiographies

• count 13 of 18

Using evidence to support what you say

• count 14 of 18