WordPress has evolved from being just a simple blogging tool into a tool being used to design all types of pages – landing pages, portfolio pages, local business pages, etc.
Whatever you can think of, somewhere around the world someone is probably already building it with WordPress!
This article will help you discover the fastest way to build stunning content in WordPress.
Drag & Drop Content Editors For WordPress
The WordPress Editor – Is There An Easier Way For Creating Web Pages In WordPress?
With so many developments that WordPress has undergone in recent years, many WordPress users believe that using the built-in WordPress WYSIWYG content editor to build or edit more complex page layouts can be quite difficult.
(The WordPress WYSIWYG editor is great for adding, formatting and editing conventional content, but adding complex layouts can be challenging!)
For example, if you look at the screenshot below …
Adding the above content would require adding something that looks like this inside your default WordPress content editor …
Normally, this is not really an issue … until you choose to change your layout (for example, move part of the content from box 1 into box 2, or replace the button inside a box from bright red to maroon. Then, you’re stuck having to mess around with page code or html.
The WordPress visual editor is supposed to provide non-technical users with an easy-to-use WYSIWYG content editor, but as you can see, if you are creating with more complex content elements, what you see on your editor screen is not what you get …
(“What You See” isn’t always “What You Get” … unless you can visualize code!)
In some instances, some people argue that you could even be better off working directly with the html source itself instead of the WordPress WYSIWYG editor when trying to build fancy layouts …
Even though WordPress is very user-friendly, this makes it hard for WordPress site owners without knowledge of HTML or CSS to fully manage their own content.
The fundamental issue with having to use shortcodes and HTML to create content in the default WordPress WYSIWYG editor can be summarized as follows:
1) Speed – How long will it take to build a web page using this editor?
2) Abstraction – How closely does the content in the editor match the content in the “front end” when you are creating or editing a page?
As you can see from the above image, what you see in the back end doesn’t look even remotely similar to what you see in the front end. This means that users need to translate mentally what the content will look like when working with complex layouts. Other solutions require a number of steps before you can begin configuring your page layout, or endlessly going back and forth between tabs and performing tweaks and updates to see how your content is coming along, which interrupts the creative process, as you wait for your page to refresh.
Many WordPress web developers have tried to come up with different solutions with the aim of making the visual editor easier. These range from standalone WP plugins you can add to your site that add new functionality to the editor, to themes that offer built-in features like drag and drop editing …
(WordPress “drag and drop” editors aim to make creating complex layouts easier!)
Some solutions end up requiring so many page design features, that users end up with complicated-looking front end editors …
Many of these alternative editors work fine, but they still fail to address the fundamental problem with using shortcodes and HTML as described earlier. Adding and editing non-linear content on a 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 become very frustrating after a while.
Ask yourself this …
If there were no technical constraints, how would you like to build and edit your web content?
Now, imagine the following scenario …
- You look at your content and if you see something that needs correction, just click on the content and start editing it. Your content has been instantly fixed.
- You simply drag and drop elements on the page, and see them exactly as they will display on the front end without having to mentally visualize any HTML or shortcodes.
- You have an idea for an item of content you’d like to add, so you immediately begin typing, and your page gets built as you go, with no delays, without switching of tab browsers, and without having to wait for new web pages to refresh.
Would that not be the perfect way to build content for your WordPress web site? Just click-to-edit and drag and drop elements around the page?
(Imagine being able to create complex web page layouts ”on the fly” 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 Simplest, Most Intuitive WYSIWYG Content Editor For WordPress Websites
Plugin Description
Thrive Content Builder is a truly intuitive WordPress click-to-edit drag and drop content builder.
Thrive Content Builder is a new and incredibly easy way to speed up the process of adding amazing content to your WordPress website.
Once installed, the plugin adds a visual content editor with an item menu that lets you drag and drop design elements to your web page …
(Thrive Content Builder adds a new content editing option to WordPress)
The plugin is actually a combination of the Thrive Content Builder and Thrive Landing Pages plugins rolled into one, plus an additional plugin feature called Thrive Lightbox.
We will take a look at all of the above and how all of this powerful functionality works seamlessly together to help you easily transform and improve your web presence and create awesome sales pages and content.
Thrive Content Builder Plugin For WordPress
With this plugin installed easily add content to your web pages and build complex page layouts using drag and drop elements …
Every aspect of your web page can be built with ”click-to-edit” and “drag and drop” ease …
Once you have positioned elements on a page, you can then continue to customize these without having to go through multiple steps or opening new settings screens …
You can also create highly attractive landing pages that can also be easily customized …
Thrive Landing Pages and Content Builder is simple, easy to use, and ideal for all WordPress users at all levels. In fact, designing pages and working on content with the plugin installed is so effortlessly simple, that the developers warn that you’ll never look back once you start using it
For more details about this plugin go here: Thrive Content Builder
The integrated Thrive Content and Page Builder plugin was created by the same team that developed Thrive Leads, another great plugin for WordPress that we have reviewed on this site.
To read about this plugin, see this article:
Plugin Benefits
Here are just a few of the benefits and advantages of using Thrive Content Builder to speed up content creation:
Quick And Easy To Install And Set Up. Ready To Start Using In Minutes.
Thrive Content Builder is really easy to install. Just upload the plugin file to your Plugin folder via your admin user section and activate.
Real-Time Content Content Editing
Thrive Content Builder is is not only really simple to use, it also lets you build and add content to your web pages in real-time.
What You See Is Exactly What You Get
With Thrive Content Builder installed, what you see as you work within the content editor – fonts, elements, page layouts, etc. is exactly what your visitors will see on the front end of your site.
Additional benefits include the following:
- Eye-Catching Layouts With Drag-And-Drop Ease: Create any layout you can imagine with drag-and-drop ease.
- Add Design Elements Without Shortcodes: With Thrive Content Builder you not only get a click-to-edit content editor, but the plugin also includes a jaw-dropping collection of design elements that you can add to your layouts without using short codes, such as pricing tables, table of contents builder, section dividers, HTML code insert boxes, etc.
- Ideal For Non-Technical Users: Not having to wait for the updated content to reload frees up your attention and allows you to build the web pages your business needs, quickly and without having to edit code or click through multiple steps to get what you want done.
(Create, edit and customize web page elements like testimonials, columns, content reveal feature, buttons, responsive maps, etc.)
Features
Thrive Content Builder offers WordPress users many powerful features. Below we have listed just some:
- Built-In WordPress Content Functionality Is Preserved: You have access to all of the built-in WordPress text editing options that you are used to (e.g. bold, paragraph formatting, headings, etc.),
- Drag And Drop Multi-Style Elements Menu: The plugin makes a “drag and drop” table of multi-style elements available on your post or page screen for editing content.
- Conversion-Boosting Elements: The plugin comes with a range of eye-catching and customizable elements that will help you increase your sales conversions, including buttons and call-to-action elements, testimonials, and guarantees. In addition to customization options, various elements also offer multiple design options.
- Responsive Web Element Design: Add responsive elements like columns, boxes, dividers, e.g. which will adjust to display correctly on different device screens.
- Add Animation Events To Your Web Pages: The plugin’s Event Manager feature lets you add animated page content, trigger lightboxes and more!
(Add Animated Elements To Your Pages)
Thrive Landing Pages Plugin – Landing Page Template Sets
Landing page template sets are templates that work together logically and use the same conversion-optimized design language to take your visitors from signup to purchase, product download and more.
(Thrive Landing Pages provides you with conversion-optimized page templates)
Thrive Landing Pages Plugin – Benefits
- Hosted on your own WordPress site
- Save time creating and customizing landing pages
- 100% conversion-optimized landing pages
- No coding skills required
- Works with any WordPress theme
Thrive Content and Page Builder not only lets you create beautiful-looking content in your WordPress posts and pages, but you can also choose from dozens of beautifully designed, web page templates that are conversion-optimized and fully customizable …
(Landing page 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 shown above, the developers plan to release new page templates for email lead generation, sales pages, lesson pages, personal branding pages, webinar pages and more.
Completely Customizable And Flexible Landing Page Template
Normally, in order to have completely customizable landing page templates, you would need to either hire a web developer to do the work, or learn how to code web pages 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 creating conversion-optimized web pages.”
Thrive Landing Pages gives you stunning pre-designed pages that are fully optimized and ready to go, and complete design freedom that allows you to change and customize any aspect of your page template …
With the landing page templates included with this plugin, you are able to:
- Change text in any bullet point, button, headline, etc.
- Remove text, images or any other part of your landing page
- Change the background image and edit colour
- Edit the color of links, buttons, text, etc.
- Select your own fonts
- Use your own images and graphics
- Edit content area size
- Change the order of elements on your page
- Translate pages into different languages
- Add custom content anywhere in the pages
- Use pre-designed, customized pages, or create your own web pages from scratch and save them as new web page templates.
(Change or customize anything on your page template)
Transform Your Website Into A Powerful Marketing Machine With Thrive Lightbox
The Thrive package also includes the Thrive Lightbox plugin, which lets you add fully configurable 2-step opt-in forms and animated elements to your content pages …
(Add lead capture forms and animation to your pages with Thrive Lightbox)
Two-Step Opt-in Forms
A two-step opt-in process helps to improve your conversion rates. Visitors click on a button or image, and then they are presented with your opt-in form …
(When visitors click on the button, they are presented with an opt-in form)
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 over a button or graphic elements, or when someone reaches a certain point on the page. You can also use the Event Manager to animate images on your web pages, using various effects (e.g. zoom in, slide in from right to left, rotate, etc.
(Set up and manage events on your WordPress site with the Thrive Lightbox plugin)
Lightboxes and events are created automatically for your landing pages, but you also have complete control over events, triggers and design.
User Testimonials
Here are some of the testimonials and comments plugin users have written about Thrive Content Builder:
”Wow! This is just getting better & better. This plugin is making my websites look so professional. Keep up the great work and thank you for the new features. Ladonna Ragalin”
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”Your stuff is beautifully designed, fast and has great options for marketers that you just don’t see with other themes. Great, great job! Absolutely love Thrive! David Coleman”
Thrive Content Builder – Useful Tips
Thrive Content Builder works with any theme in WordPress, not just with the Thrive Landing Pages plugin. You cannot use Thrive Content Builder to edit content on existing pages or posts that were not created with the plugin installed.
You can add WordPress shortcodes inside the Content Builder or Landing Pages plugin and they will be displayed correctly on your website.
Thrive Lightbox works with any content built with Thrive Content Builder.
Plugin Support
Thrive Content Builder and Landing Pages provides 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 lifetime software upgrades, plus one year unlimited support with their purchase, backed by a risk-free, thirty day, 100% refund guarantee.
This is an exciting product that will just keep getting better.
Software Price
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 License – This enables you to use the plugin on one website only. Pricing includes full feature set, unlimited updates and one year of unlimited support. Price = $59.00.
- Unlimited Sites Licensing – This enables you to configure the plugin on all of your personal sites. It includes full feature set, unlimited updates and 1 year of unlimited support. Cost = $87.00.
- Agency Licensing – Use on your sites and on all your client domains. Includes access to Thrive Content Builder, plus all Thrive Themes & Thrive Plugins. Price = $247.00 per year.
Please Note: Current pricing for Thrive Content Builder depends on whether there are any promotions or limited-time specials being offered. The above reflects the price when this article was written. This may or may not be the actual price charged by the plugin author when you visit the website and there may be additional upsells or one-time offers after purchasing.
Check the plugin’s website for the latest price here:
Additional Info
The Thrive Landing Pages and Content Builder plugin developers emphatically maintain 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 the time-saving benefits of ready-made web page elements and beautiful, pre-designed templates that help speed up your content creation, and on the other hand, you also have complete control over your design process and the ability to change everything on your web page, using the plugin’s click-to-edit and drag and drop features, that lets you see exactly how the content you are working on will appear to visitors when published.
For ”how-to” videos of the plugin, including installation instructions and tutorials, FAQs, support help desk, contact details and more, visit the Thrive website.
In Conclusion …
If you want to edit something, you click on the element and start editing. If you want to change something, you can see the change happen immediately. If you want to move something, you drag it and drop it into its new position. There are no unnecessary steps involved.
If you want to transform and improve your web presence and create amazing marketing pages and content, Thrive Content Builder and Landing Pages delivers an incredible conversion-boosting package with a single, inexpensive plugin.
To learn more, visit the plugin website:
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