WordPress has evolved from being just a simple blogging tool into a tool that can be used to design all types of pages – direct sales pages, product showcase pages, business pages, etc.
Whatever you can think of, somewhere around the world someone is probably already building it using WordPress!
This article will help you discover the fastest way to create stunning content in WordPress websites.
Drag & Drop Content Editors For WordPress
The WordPress Visual Content Editor – Is There A Better Way To Create Beautiful-Looking Content Layouts In WordPress?
Using the built-in WordPress editor to build or edit complex layouts can sometimes be difficult.
(The default WordPress editor is great for adding, formatting and editing conventional content, but adding complex layouts can be quite challenging!)
For example, let’s say you want to create something like the content shown below …
To create the above layout, users would normally have to add short codes to the content for every page element they want to display to visitors …
Normally, this is not really an issue … unless you choose to change the layout (for example, move some of the content from box 1 into box 2, or replace the background colour inside a box from dark green to gold. Then, you’re stuck having to mess around with code inside the editor.
The WordPress editor is supposed to be an easy-to-use WYSIWYG content editor, but as you can see, if you are working with more complex layouts, often what you see in the visual editor may not be what you get …
(“What You See” isn’t always “What You Get” … unless you can visualize code!)
In some situations, some people argue that users could be better off working directly with the source html itself instead of the WYSIWYG editor when trying to add fancy layouts …
Even though WordPress is extremely easy to use, this makes it hard for non-technical website owners to have full control of their own content.
The fundamental challenge with using HTML and shortcodes to create content with WordPress can be summarized as follows:
1) Speed – How long will it take to create a web page using the editor?
2) Abstraction – How closely does the content in the ”back end” resemble the content in the “front end” 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 even remotely similar to what you see in the front end. This means that users need to mentally translate what the content will look like when working with complex layouts. Other solutions require taking several steps before you can begin configuring your page layout, or endlessly switching browser tabs and performing updates to see how your content is coming along, which interrupts the creative process, as you wait for your updates to refresh.
Many WordPress web developers have come up with different solutions to try and address this issue. These range from standalone plugins you can add to your site that add new functionality to the editor, to WordPress themes that offer built-in features like drag and drop editing …
(WordPress “drag and drop” editors aim to make content creation easier!)
Some solutions include so many page-building features, that users end up with complicated-looking front end editors …
Many of these solutions work fine, but they don’t address the fundamental issue of using HTML and shortcodes as described earlier. Creating and adding 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 your web content to look “just right” quickly, this can start to become really frustrating after a while.
Ask yourself this …
If there were no technical constraints, how would you like your web page builder to function?
Now that you’ve asked this question, visualize the following …
- You see something in your content that needs correction so you, simply click on the content and start typing. Your content has been instantly changed.
- You just drag and drop elements on the page, and see them exactly as they will display on the front end without having to mentally translate any HTML or shortcodes.
- You have an idea for a specific piece of content that you would like to add, so you simply start typing, and you build your page on the fly, with no delays, no switching tabs, and no waiting for new web pages to reload.
Would that not be the perfect way to create content for your website? A true visual content editor where all you have to do is click-to-edit and drag and drop elements around your pages?
(Imagine being able to create complex page layouts in real-time for your web content with no technical skills required!)
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 And Landing Page Builder – WordPress Click-To-Edit Drag And Drop Content Creation Tool
Plugin Description
Thrive Content Builder is a revolutionary WordPress plugin that lets website owners easily create amazing content layout using true click-to-edit and drag and drop simplicity.
Thrive Content Builder is a new and incredibly easy way to set up conversion-focused pages on any WordPress website.
Once installed, Thrive Content Builder adds a visual content editor and an item menu that lets you drag and drop design elements to your page …
(Thrive Content Builder adds a new content builder to WordPress)
Thrive Content And Landing Page Builder is actually a combination of the Thrive Content Builder and Thrive Landing Pages plugins combined into one, plus an additional plugin feature called Thrive Lightbox.
Let’s examine each of the above plugins and how these powerful features work together to help you transform and improve your business online and create amazing marketing pages and content.
Thrive Content Builder – WordPress Plugin
This plugin lets you easily add complex design layouts to your web pages using drag and drop elements …
Everything on your page can be built using ”click-to-edit” and “drag and drop” …
Once you have positioned elements on the page, you can then further customize or edit these without having to go through additional steps or switching screens …
You can also work inside stunning landing pages that can also be easily edited …
Thrive Landing Pages and Content Builder is simple, easy to use, and ideal for all WordPress users at all levels. In fact, designing web pages with Thrive Content Builder and Landing Pages installed is so amazingly simple, that the developers warn that once you start using it, you’ll never look back!
Learn more here: Thrive Content Builder
Thrive Content Builder and Thrive Landing Pages were created by the same team that developed Thrive Leads, another fantastic plugin that we have previously written about on this site.
To read more about this plugin, see this page:
Benefits Of Using Thrive Landing Pages And Content Builder Plugin
Here are just a few of the benefits and advantages of using Thrive Content Builder to speed up the process of creating content for your web site:
Quick And Simple To Install And Set Up. Be Up And Running In No Time.
Thrive Content Builder installs like any regular WP plugin. Just upload it to your Plugins folder via your admin user account and activate.
Edit Content In Real Time
Thrive Content Builder is is not only simple to use, it also lets you create content in real-time.
What You See Is Exactly What You Get
With Thrive Content Builder installed, what you see as you work within the editor – typefaces, visual elements, page layouts, etc. is exactly what you get on the front end of your site.
Additional benefits and advantages include the following:
- Attractive Page Layouts With Drag-And-Drop Ease: Create any type of layout you can imagine with intuitive drag-and-drop functionality.
- Customizable Elements Included: With Thrive Content Builder you not only get an exciting and easy-to-use click-to-edit WordPress content builder, but the plugin also includes an impressive collection of functional and eye-catching design elements that you can add to your content layouts without using short codes, for e.g.: content toggle, borderless content, testimonials, responsive videos, etc.
- Ideal For Non-Technical Users: Not having to deal with technical stuff for your content to load frees up your attention and allows you to build the pages your business needs, quickly and without having to edit code or click through multiple steps to get what you need done.
(Insert, edit and customize page elements like testimonials, flat design elements, star ratings for review pages, buttons, Google Map embeds, etc.)
Plugin Features
Thrive Content Builder provides WP users many features. Here are just a few of these:
- Built-In Content Editor Functionality Is Still Available: You have all of the built-in content editing options that you are used to (e.g. underline, left-aligned text, font sizes, etc.),
- Drag And Drop Multi-Style Elements: The plugin makes a “drag and drop” list of multi-style elements available on your post or page screen for editing content.
- Conversion-Boosting Elements: The plugin provides you with a range of attention-grabbing 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 Page Design: Add responsive elements like columns, boxes, content section dividers, e.g. which will display great on different screens.
- Add Animation Events To Pages: Thrive Content Builder’s Event Manager feature lets you create animations, trigger lightboxes and more!
(Add Animated Elements To Your Web Pages)
Thrive Landing Pages – Landing Page Template Sets
Landing page template sets are web templates that work together logically and use the same conversion-optimized design language to take your visitors all the way from signup to purchase, product download and more.
(Thrive Landing Pages gives you conversion-optimized page templates)
Thrive Landing Pages Plugin – Benefits
- Everything is hosted on your own WordPress site
- Save time and money building gorgeous web pages for your WordPress web site
- 100% conversion-optimized page templates
- No tech skills required
- Works with any theme
Thrive Content Builder and Landing Pages not only lets you create beautiful content in your WordPress posts and pages, but you can also choose from dozens of beautifully designed, conversion optimized page templates and fully customizable …
(Thrive Landing Pages provides sets of templates that work together logically and use the same conversion-optimized design language)
There are over 30 templates available, with more templates planned for release. In addition to the available templates, 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 And Flexible Landing Page Template Sets
Typically, to be able to fully customize landing page templates, you would need to either hire 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 mess around with 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-built page templates that are fully optimized and ready to go, and complete design freedom that lets you change or edit any element of your page …
The landing page template sets included with this plugin let you do the following:
- Change text in any button, headline, bullet point, etc.
- Delete text, images or any other part of the landing page
- Change any background images or background colour
- Edit the color of text, buttons, links, etc.
- Use your own fonts
- Use your own images
- Edit content area size
- Rearrange the order of elements on your pages
- Translate pages into different languages
- Add custom content anywhere in the pages
- Start with a blank web page and create your own templates, or even build a library of custom landing pages.
(Change and customize any element of your page template)
Thrive Lightbox Plugin – Transform Your Website Into A Marketing Machine
The Thrive plugin package also includes Thrive Lightbox, which lets you add fully customizable two-step opt-in forms and events to your pages …
(Add opt-in forms and animated objects to your pages with Thrive Lightbox)
Thrive Lighbox 2-Step Opt-in Forms
A two-step opt-in process can increase your conversion rates. Visitors click on a button or image, and then they are presented with your opt-in form …
(Visitors click on a button and are presented with an opt-in form)
Event Manager
An “event” consists of a trigger and an action. You can make opt-in forms appear when your visitor clicks or hovers their mouse over a button or an image, 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 a range of animation effects (e.g. fade out, slide in from right to left, roll out, etc.
(Set up and manage events on your pages 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.
Testimonials
Here are some of the testimonials and feedback plugin customers have provided for 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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”Great stuff! I am really impressed by all the new additions. You guys have shown a true commitment to making these themes and the Content Builder awesome. Michael Johnson”
Plugin Tips
Thrive Content Builder works with any theme in WordPress, not just with the Thrive Landing Pages plugin. Note, however, that you cannot use Thrive Content Builder to edit content that was not created using the plugin.
You can add short codes inside the Content Builder or Landing Pages plugin and they will be displayed correctly when published.
Thrive Lightbox works with any content built with Thrive Content Builder.
Thrive Content Builder Plugin Support
Thrive Content Builder and Landing Pages comes with free updates, new landing templates and upcoming features. The Thrive team is constantly working on adding new features and improving existing ones.
Thrive software is well-supported, and users get unlimited software updates, plus one year unlimited support with their purchase, backed by a no-risk, 30 day, 100% money-back guarantee.
This is an exciting product that will just keep getting better.
Product Pricing
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 allows you to activate the plugin on one web site only. Includes full feature set, unlimited updates and one year of unlimited support. Price = $59.00.
- Unlimited Sites License – This edition allows you to run the plugin on all of your personal web sites. Includes full feature set, unlimited updates and one year of unlimited support. Cost = $87.00.
- Agency License – This allows you to activate the plugin on all of your own web sites and all client web sites. Includes access to Thrive Content Builder, plus all Thrive Themes & Thrive Plugins. Price = $247.00 per year.
Note: The cost of purchasing the Thrive Content Builder plugin can vary, depending on whether there are any promotions or limited-time specials being offered. When we last checked, the product sells for the amounts shown above. This may or may not be the actual pricing set by the software developer when you visit the site and you may be shown additional upsells or one-time offers after your purchase.
Check the plugin’s website for the latest pricing details:
Additional Information
The Thrive Content Builder and Landing Pages 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 page elements and templates that help make designing your pages faster, and on the other hand, you have complete control over your design process and the freedom to edit everything on your page, using the plugin’s visual content editor, which allows you to see how the content you are working on will appear after being published.
For ”how-to” videos of the plugin, including help documentation and tutorials, FAQs, support helpdesk, contact details and more, visit the plugin website.
In Conclusion …
If you want to edit something, just click on the element and start editing. If you want to change something, you’ll see the change happen immediately. If you want to move something, simply drag it and drop it into its new location. There are no overly complicated steps involved.
If you want to transform and improve your web site and create awesome sales pages, streamlined landing pages and engaging content, Thrive Content Builder delivers an incredible conversion-boosting package with a single, inexpensive plugin.
For full details, check out the plugin here:
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