WordPress has evolved from being just a simple blogging tool to a tool being used to create all types of websites.
Whatever you can imagine, someone is bound to be already building it with WordPress!
In this article you will discover the simplest, most intuitive visual content builder for WordPress sites.
Drag & Drop Content Editors For WordPress
Does The WordPress WYSIWYG Editor Still Meet All Of Your Content Creation And Editing Needs?
With so many advancements that WordPress has gone through in recent years, many WordPress developers and users believe that the WordPress content editor is lagging behind all of the other developments being made to the software.
(The default WordPress content editor is great for adding, formatting and editing “linear” content, but adding complex content elements can be quite challenging!)
For example, if you look at the illustration below …
To create the above layout, you would have to insert shortcodes into your content for each of the page elements you want to display to visitors …
Typically, this is not an issue … unless you choose to reconfigure the layout (for example, move some of the content from box 1 into box 2, or change the background colour in a box from red to yellow. Then, you’re stuck having to mess around with page code.
The WordPress content editor is supposed to be an easy-to-use WYSIWYG editor, but as you can see, if you are creating with complex layouts, often what you see in the visual editor may not be what you are going to get when your web page is published …
(“What You See” isn’t always “What You Get” … unless you can visualize code!)
In some situations, you may even be better off working with the html source itself instead of the WordPress WYSIWYG editor when trying to create something other than simple layouts …
Even though WordPress is extremely easy to use, this makes it difficult for users with no knowledge of HTML or CSS to have full control of their own content.
The fundamental issue of using HTML and shortcodes to create content in the default WordPress WYSIWYG editor can be summarized as follows:
1) Speed – How long does it take to create a page using the editor?
2) Abstraction – How closely does the content in the ”back end” resemble the “front end” content when you are creating or editing a page?
As you can see from the above, what you see in the content editor doesn’t look anything like what you see in the front end. This means that you need to mentally translate what your content will look like when working with sophisticated layouts. Other solutions require several steps before you can start configuring your page layout, or endlessly switching tabs and performing tweaks and updates to see how your content is coming along, which can interrupt the creative process, as you wait for the content to load.
A number of WordPress web developers have come up with various solutions to try to make the visual editor easier. Some of these solutions range from stand alone WP plugins you can install on your site that add new functionality to the editor, to themes that include built-in features like drag and drop editing …
(WordPress “drag and drop” editors aim to make creating complex page layouts easier!)
Some solutions include so many complex page-building features, that users need to learn how to work with complicated-looking front end editors …
Many of these alternative solutions work fine, but they fail to address the fundamental problem with using shortcodes and HTML as described earlier. Creating, adding and editing sophisticated content elements on a web page becomes overly complicated, involves multiple steps and doesn’t match what users expect to see on the “front end.”
If you want to create or edit complex layouts quickly, this can start to become very frustrating.
Ask yourself this …
If there were no technical constraints, how would you like your page builder to behave?
Now that you’ve asked this question, imagine this …
- You look at your content and if you see something that needs changing, simply click on the content and start writing. Your content is instantly fixed.
- You can drag and drop elements around the page, and see them exactly as they will display on the front end without having to mentally abstract from HTML or shortcodes.
- You have an idea for a specific piece of content that you’d like to add, so you simply begin typing, and you build your web page on the fly, with no delays, no tab switching, and no waiting for new content to resave and reload.
Would that not be the ideal way to create content for your WordPress website? Just click-to-edit and drag and drop elements around the page?
(Imagine being able to create complex web page layouts in real-time for your web content with no technical constraints!)
If you are ready to change the way you create content in WordPress site, then here is a plugin that you may want to consider using …
Thrive Content Builder Plugin – The Ultimate Click-To-Edit Front End Builder For WordPress
Plugin Description
Thrive Content Builder is a unique WordPress plugin that gives you complete control over every aspect of your web page design with true click-to-edit and drag and drop simplicity.
The Thrive Content Builder plugin is a new and incredibly easy way to speed up the process of adding content to your WordPress website.
Once installed, the plugin adds a visual content editor with a sidebar menu that lets you click, then drag and drop design elements on your page …
(Thrive Content Builder adds a new content editing option to WordPress)
The Thrive Landing Pages And Content Builder plugin is actually a combination of the Thrive Content Builder and Thrive Landing Pages plugins merged into one, plus an additional plugin feature called Thrive Lightbox.
Let’s review each of the above plugins and how all of this exciting functionality works seamlessly together to help you transform and improve your business online and create awesome marketing pages, streamlined landing pages and engaging content.
Thrive Content Builder – WordPress Plugin
This plugin lets you easily add content to your web pages and build complex page layouts using drag and drop elements …
Every element on your page can be configured by dragging and dropping things around the page and then clicking to edit them …
Once elements have been positioned on a page, you can continue to further edit them without going through multiple steps or opening new configuration screens …
You can also work inside stunning landing pages that can also be easily customized …
Thrive Content and Page Builder is simple, easy to use, and ideal for all WordPress users at all levels. In fact, designing pages with the Thrive Content Builder and Landing Pages plugin installed is so effortlessly easy, that the developers guarantee that you’ll never look at creating content the same way once you start using it
For more details, visit the plugin site here: Thrive Content Builder
Thrive Content Builder and Thrive Landing Pages were created by the same team that developed Thrive Leads, another amazing plugin for WordPress we’ve reviewed on this site.
Go here to read about the plugin:
Plugin Benefits
Below we have listed just some of the benefits of using Thrive Content Builder to speed up content creation:
Quick & Easy Installation
Thrive Content Builder is quite easy to install. Simply upload it to your Plugin folder via your administrator account and activate.
Real-Time Content Content Editing
Thrive Content Builder is really simple and intuitive to use and lets you create and edit content in real-time.
A Truly Visual Content Builder
With Thrive Content Builder installed, what you see as you work within the content editor – typefaces, visual elements, layouts, etc. is exactly what your visitors will see on the front end of your site.
Additional benefits and advantages include the following:
- Attractive Page Layouts With Drag-And-Drop Ease: Create any layout you can imagine with intuitive drag-and-drop functionality.
- Design Elements Included: With Thrive Content Builder you not only get a visually exciting click-to-edit WordPress content builder, but the plugin also includes an impressive collection of professional web design elements that you can customizable and use on your content layouts without using shortcodes, for e.g.: pricing tables, borderless content, section dividers, responsive videos, etc.
- Ideal For Non-Technical Users: Not having to deal with technical stuff for your page to reload frees up your attention and allows you to be more focused while you build or edit your content or click through multiple layers of menus to get what you need done.
(Thrive Content Builder lets you easily insert, edit and customize web page elements like testimonials, columns, feature grids, section dividers, credit card icons, etc.)
Thrive Content Builder Features
Thrive Content Builder offers WP users many features. Below we have listed just some of these features:
- All WordPress Content Functionality Is Still Available: You have access to all of the built-in WordPress editing options that you are used to (e.g. bold, justified paragraphs, headings, etc.),
- Drag And Drop Elements: The plugin makes a “drag and drop” list of elements available on your post or page screen when editing content.
- Conversion-Boosting Elements: The plugin provides you with various eye-catching and customizable elements that will help you increase your conversions, including buttons and call-to-action elements, testimonials, and guarantees. In addition to customization options, multiple design options are also available for various elements.
- Responsive Element Design: Add responsive columns, guarantee boxes, content section dividers, e.g. which will display great on different-sized screens.
- Add Animation To Your Pages: Thrive Content Builder’s Event Manager feature lets you insert animated page elements, trigger lightboxes and more!
(Add Animated Elements To Your Pages)
Thrive Landing Pages – Landing Page Template Sets
Thrive Landing Pages provides sets of templates that work together logically and use the same conversion-optimized design language to take your visitors all the way from initial signup to purchase, product download and more.
(Thrive Landing Pages plugin gives you conversion-optimized web page templates)
Thrive Landing Pages Plugin – Benefits
- Everything is hosted on your own WordPress site
- Save time and money building and customizing pages
- 100% conversion-optimized pages
- No technical skills needed
- Works with any theme
Thrive Content Builder and Landing Pages not only can be used to create beautiful content in your WordPress posts and pages, but you can also choose from dozens of professionally designed, web page templates that are conversion-optimized and fully customizable …
(Landing page template sets that work together logically and use the same conversion-optimized design language)
There are currently over thirty templates available, with more templates planned for release. In addition to the templates that are currently available, the developers plan to release new web page templates for email lead generation, sales pages, training pages, personal branding pages, webinar pages and more.
Fully Customizable Landing Page Template
Typically, to be able to have completely customizable landing page templates, you would need to either pay a web site designer to do the work, or learn web coding languages like HTML and CSS and figure out what to do yourself.
As Shane Melaugh, co-founder of Thrive Themes says …
“There are many ways to get a pre-designed page published quickly, but the problem comes with customization. Total design freedom requires either hiring web developers to do the work for you, or learn how to do it yourself, which involves learning how to code or use overly complicated editors. Customizable usually means complicated, expensive or time-consuming. So, you can either have something that is fast and easy to set up, or something that is customizable and flexible. But you couldn’t have both … until now! With Thrive Landing Pages you get the best of both worlds for building conversion-optimized web pages.”
Thrive Landing Pages gives you attractive pre-designed web pages that are fully optimized and ready to go, and complete design freedom that allows you to change and edit any element of your page template …
The landing page templates included with this plugin let you do the following:
- Edit text in all bullet points, buttons, headlines, etc.
- Remove text, images or any other part of your landing page
- Replace all background images and edit color
- Change the color of buttons, links, text, etc.
- Choose your own fonts
- Use your own images and graphics
- Edit the size of the content area
- Rearrange the order of elements on your pages
- Translate everything on the page into a different language
- Add any type of custom content anywhere in any of the pages
- Start with a blank web page and create your own templates, or even build a custom landing page templates library.
(Change or customize anything on your page)
Transform Your Web Site Into A Powerful Marketing Machine With Thrive Lightbox
The Thrive package also includes Thrive Lightbox, which lets you add fully editable 2-step opt-in forms and animated elements to your site …
(Add opt-in forms and animation to your WordPress site with Thrive Lightbox)
Thrive Lighbox 2-Step Opt-in Forms
A 2-step opt-in process can increase your conversion rates. When visitors click on a button or image they are presented with your opt-in form …
(Capture more leads and subscribers with a two-step opt-in process)
Thrive Lightbox Event Manager
An “event” consists of a trigger and an action. You can make an opt-in form appear when when visitors click or hover their mouse over a button or an image, or when someone scrolls down to a certain point on the page. You can also use the Event Manager to animate attention-getting elements on your web pages, using various animation effects (e.g. fade in, slide in from left to right, roll out, etc.
(Set up and manage events on your WordPress pages with the Thrive Lightbox plugin)
A lightbox and event is created automatically for your landing pages, but you also have complete control over your events, triggers and design.
Feedback From Users
Here are a few of the testimonials and comments that plugin customers have published about the Thrive Content Builder plugin:
”You guys are simply awesome I am loving everything you are doing at the moment. Keep up the great work you really are making such a big difference in this field. Jule Fuller”
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“I’m blown away by the plugin. Keep up the incredible, WordPress changing work, guys! Dean Phillips”
Plugin Tips
Thrive Content Builder works with any theme in WordPress, not just with Thrive Landing Pages. You cannot use Thrive Content Builder to edit content that was not created using the plugin.
You can add shortcodes inside Thrive Content Builder or Thrive Landing Pages and they will display correctly when published.
Thrive Lightbox works with any content you build using Thrive Content Builder.
Plugin Support
Thrive Content and Page Builder Plugin comes with free updates, new landing pages and upcoming features. The Thrive team is constantly working on adding new features and improving existing ones.
Thrive software is very well-supported, and users get unlimited updates, plus one year unlimited support with their purchase, backed by a no-risk, 30 day, 100% refund guarantee.
This is an exciting product for WordPress users that will just keep getting better.
Software Cost
At the time of writing, the pricing information shown below includes all three components described above (Thrive Content Builder, Thrive Landing Pages & Thrive Lightbox):
- Single Site Edition – This license enables you to configure the plugin on a single domain. Price includes full feature set, unlimited updates and one year of unlimited support. Price = $59.00.
- Unlimited Sites Licensing – This license option enables you to configure the plugin on all of your personal web sites. Cost includes full feature set, unlimited updates and one year of unlimited support. Price = $87.00.
- Agency License Edition – Use on all your sites & on all your client sites. Pricing includes access to Thrive Content Builder, plus all Thrive Themes & Thrive Plugins. Cost = $247.00 per year.
Note: Pricing for this product can vary, depending on whether there are any promotions or limited-time specials being offered. The pricing above was correct at the time this content was published. This may not be the actual price set by the product seller when you visit the website and you may be shown additional upsells or one-time offers after your purchase.
Check the plugin’s website for current pricing details:
Additional Plugin Information
The Thrive Content Builder plugin developers repeatedly assert that the plugin’s architecture gives you the “best of both worlds,” and help bring back the “joy of creating content.”
On the one hand, you have time-saving features like ready-made web page elements and conversion-optimized templates that help make designing your content faster, and on the other hand, you have complete control over your design process and the ability to edit everything on your web page, using the plugin’s visual content editor, which allows you to work unhindered by overly complicated options.
For demo videos of the plugin, including help documentation and tutorials, FAQs, support helpdesk, contact details and more, visit the Thrive website.
Install This Plugin …
If you want to edit something, you click on the element and start editing. If you want to change something, do it, and you’ll see the change happen instantly. If you want to move something, just drag it and drop it into its new location. There are no complicated steps involved.
If you want to transform and improve your website and create amazing sales pages, streamlined landing pages and engaging content, Thrive Content and Landing Page Builder delivers an incredible conversion-boosting package with a single, inexpensive plugin.
To learn more, check out the plugin here:
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