How to Write an Op-Ed

An op-ed — opinion editorial — is a short, argument-driven piece published under the author's name in an external publication. It is one of the highest-credibility formats available to a B2B executive or business leader. A well-placed op-ed in a respected industry or business publication can introduce your thinking to thousands of the right readers in a single day, and the third-party credibility of the publication transfers to you in a way that self-published content simply cannot replicate.

The challenge is that most people do not know how to write one. An op-ed is not a blog post. It is not a white paper. It is not a thought leadership article in the conventional content marketing sense. It has a specific form — short, argument-driven, built around a single clear position — and editors accept or reject submissions primarily based on whether the submitted piece fits that form. Understanding what an op-ed actually is, structurally and rhetorically, is the first requirement for writing one that gets published.

What an Op-Ed Is — and Isn't

An op-ed is a persuasive argument on a specific, timely issue, written by someone with relevant authority or experience, for a general or specialist audience. It is short — typically 600 to 900 words in a mainstream publication, up to 1,200 in a longer-form trade outlet — and it makes one argument. Not several arguments loosely related to a theme. One argument, clearly stated, substantiated with evidence and reasoning, and delivered with conviction.

It is not:

• A survey of multiple perspectives on a topic ("on the one hand, some believe... on the other hand...")
• An explanation of how something works (that is a how-to article or explainer, not an op-ed)
• A company announcement or profile in disguise
• A comprehensive overview of all the issues in a field
• A hedged, qualify-everything academic discussion that avoids taking a position

The op-ed form exists to publish genuine opinions from people with standing to hold them. An editor reading a submission is asking: does this person have a clear, specific view on a matter that their readers care about? Is the view original enough to be worth publishing? Is it argued persuasively? If the answer to any of these is no, the piece gets rejected regardless of how well it is written.

Finding Your Argument

The argument is the hardest part of writing an op-ed, and it is where most first attempts fail. People sit down to "write an op-ed about X" without having first identified what they actually think about X that is specific and distinctive enough to constitute an argument worth publishing.

A publishable op-ed argument has three characteristics:

• It is specific. "AI will change business" is not an argument — it is an observation. "Most businesses are investing in AI automation in exactly the areas where it will produce the least value, for a reason that the current conversation is missing" is an argument. The specificity tells you what the piece will prove and what the reader will believe differently after reading it.
• It is contestable. An argument that nobody would dispute is not an argument — it is a statement of the obvious. The best op-ed arguments are ones that many readers will initially resist, and that the piece then persuades them to reconsider. If everyone already agrees, there is nothing to argue.
• It is timely. Op-eds are pegged to the moment. They respond to a current debate, a recent event, a trend that is gathering attention, or a question that is live in the reader's professional world right now. An argument that could have been made at any point in the last five years without feeling urgent is harder to place than one that feels like it needs to be said now.

The most productive way to find your argument: think about what you believe that contradicts the conventional wisdom in your field. What do most people in your industry get wrong? What assumption is almost universally held that your experience has shown you to be false? What is the uncomfortable truth that the comfortable conversation is avoiding? Op-eds that challenge widely-held assumptions are among the most publishable formats precisely because they give the reader something to argue with — and then persuade them.

The Op-Ed Structure

Writing It

Op-ed writing is tight, direct, and concrete. The constraints of the format — 600 to 900 words for a complete argument — mean that there is no room for hedging, qualifications that do not add to the argument, or passages that exist to soften an uncomfortable conclusion. Every sentence either advances the argument or can be cut.

Some specific techniques that work well in the format:

• Use specific numbers rather than vague approximations. "Three in four companies" is more compelling than "most companies." Specific numbers signal that you have done the work, not just approximating from intuition.
• Use concrete examples. Abstract arguments are harder to follow than specific ones. "A logistics company we worked with" or "the 2024 McKinsey survey found" — any anchor in a specific case or source makes the argument more persuasive and more memorable.
• Write shorter sentences in high-stakes moments. The nut graf, the kicker, and any moment of key emphasis benefit from shorter, cleaner sentences. Long sentences qualify; short sentences declare.
• Avoid jargon that does not serve the argument. Industry jargon that the general reader of your target publication cannot parse creates friction without adding substance. If the jargon is necessary, define it in the sentence where it first appears.

The Headline and Opening

In most publications, the editor will write your headline — but submitting a working headline that captures the argument is useful because it helps the editor understand what the piece is claiming. A good working headline states the argument, not just the topic.

The opening paragraph matters more in an op-ed than in almost any other format, because editors and readers make the decision to continue in the first two sentences. The strongest op-ed openings tend to be either a striking specific scene, a counterintuitive fact, or a direct confrontation with the conventional wisdom the piece is about to challenge.

Editing Before You Submit

Op-eds are typically submitted as finished pieces, not drafts. The editing process before submission should be rigorous. Apply these tests before you send:

• Can you state the argument in one sentence? If not, the argument is not clear enough yet.
• Does every paragraph advance the argument? If a paragraph could be removed without weakening the piece, remove it.
• Is the nut graf within the first three paragraphs? If the argument only becomes clear in paragraph five, move it up.
• Is the piece within the outlet's specified word count? Submitting 1,400 words to a publication that specifies 750 is a sure way to have your piece declined or heavily cut in ways you may not endorse.
• Have you read the piece aloud? Awkward sentences that survive silent reading often reveal themselves when read aloud.
• Does the kicker land? Read the last paragraph in isolation. Does it feel like a satisfying end? Does it return to the argument? If it trails off, rewrite it.

What Gets Op-Eds Rejected

For advice on identifying the right publications to submit to and writing pitches that get accepted, see our guide on how to get published as a guest author.