WWN33 : Principles of Persuasion

Persuasion gets a bad rap.

When you say the words “persuasion” or “sales”, it makes most people think of the greasy salesman hawking some rubbish that they don't really want.

Or of the scumbag pickup artist types manipulating women with negging and whatnot because Momma never raised them good.

But that’s not what Persuasion is.

In reality, there’s one simple reason you hate that sleazy salesman:

They're not persuasive enough!

If they were more persuasive, more effective at making the sale, then you’d love it.

Because bad persuasion is bad communication.

It's in your face, it's obnoxious, it's ineffective.

It's the greasy guy hitting on a coworker at the office, manboobs resting grossly on the edge of the photocopier.

That is not persuasion.

Persuasion is, to stretch the metaphor to breaking point, for the dude to shower, shave, hit the gym for a year and then politely ask the girl on a date.

It's taking an unwelcome interruption and making it welcome.

Good persuasion is simply good communication.

Communication that moves people to act.

Now, that act can be small (to like, engage, share). It can be large (to buy, to change). It can even just be to keep on reading the piece instead of scrolling away on X-Twitter or to turn the page in the book instead of putting it down.

Whatever the end goal, if you can't persuade people to act, your writing is worthless.

It's done nothing.

Now, some sensitive types still object to the idea of persuasion. They see it as somehow immoral to change someone’s mind. To move them from one place to another.

It feels like forcing people.

But the morality of persuasion depends on what you're using it for.

Persuasion is a tool. And like any tool, the tool itself is not right or wrong, but the end goal it’s being used for, the telos of the tool: that determines the morality of it.

To analogise it:

When my kids are sick it's the right thing to do to persuade them to take their medicine.

After all, the alternative is to pin them down and force them to take the medicine and that is no fun for anyone, believe me.

Likewise, if you're only interested in persuasion to line your own pockets then yeah…

…it's scammy and you suck.

But if you're trying to make your writing more effective? To write things that people enjoy reading? Enjoy interacting with?

And yes, to make money to feed your family and fund your writing by selling valuable products?

Then there's nothing scammy about that at all.

Done rightly, it's bringing people into line with reality.

And we all need that, because without reality then we’re lost. We’re wandering off into myths and being bent out of shape.

But after a whole lot of “what persuasion is not” let me define what persuasion is.

Simply put, persuasion is communicating the truth in a way that makes your reader feel it.

No, that’s not the dictionary definition.

No, I don’t care.

That’s what we’re going to use as we dive into more of the practical “how to” of persuasion and persuasive writing over the next few weeks.

But before we wrap up part one of these pieces on persuasion, one caution...

Persuasion is overrated!

Now, that's not what you expected introducing a series on persuasion, was it?

But it's true.

People on Twitter especially, they get all hot around the collar for persuasion but it's not the be all and end all. It has limits.

Persuasion is not magic. It's not a miracle. You can't force someone down a different path if only you get just the right words. No amount of pretty writing will make a cat a vegetarian or a hippo cook up a steak.

It's simply speaking the truth in a way that the truth hits home.

But people will as people do and people will do whatever they will. Let the reader understand.

At the end of the day?

It's just good writing.

And that's what we're all about.

Yours,

James Carran, Craftsman Writer