Creating an argument

In short, your claim is what you want your reader to understand or do. The claim in an argument is what you would like to convince the reader about. 

It could be anything from "log in" to  "buy your car insurance online".

But the claim alone is just that, a claim, which the reader might disagree with or choose to ignore.

In order to actually persuade, you need to make sure it makes sense to your reader.

For a claim to make sense, you need to justify it and give the user a reason to do it. 

The reason is what helps you convince your reader. The claim is what you want them to do, the reason is why theiy should do it. You can tell your customer to log in before they buy more insurance, but to convince them by showing them why it is useful. 

Instead of just saying "log in before buying new products" you can add the reason they should do it: "Once you're logged in, we'll be able to tailor products and prices to your needs".

When you have justified your claim with a reason, its starting to look like a good argument.However, a claim and a reason isn't always enough.

To make your argument rock solid you need proof! You need to prove your point with facts or some kind of knowledge the user find credible.This brings truth to your reasoning, and makes the argument more trustworthy.

This doesn't mean you have to bring out numbers or dive into long explanations. The proof can be a reference to something that is common knowledge, or even better - it can refer to something your reader knows or has experienced themselves.