WordPress has evolved from being just a simple blogging application to a tool that is now used to design all types of web pages – marketing pages, product showcase pages, local business pages, etc.
Whatever you can think of, somewhere around the world someone is bound to be already building it using WordPress!
This article will help you discover the fastest way to build stunning content and beautiful layouts in WordPress websites.
Drag & Drop Content Editors For WordPress
The WordPress Editor – Is There An Easier Option For Designing Amazing-Looking Web Site Pages In WordPress?
Using the built-in WordPress visual content editor to create or edit sophisticated layouts can be difficult.
(The WordPress content editor is great for adding, formatting and editing conventional text and images, but adding more complex layouts can be challenging!)
For example, let’s say you want to create something like the layout shown below …
To create the above layout, you would normally need to add shortcodes to the content for each of the page elements you want to display to visitors …
Generally, this is not really an issue … until you need to reconfigure your layout (for example, move some of the content from box 1 into box 2, or change the button in box 1 from bright red to some other color. Then, you’re stuck having to mess around with page code.
The WordPress editor is supposed to provide users with an easy-to-use WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) editor, but as you can see, if you are trying to create more complex page elements, often what you see on your screen may not be what you get …
(“What You See” isn’t always “What You Get” … unless you can visualize code!)
In some instances, users could be better off working with the html source itself instead of the WordPress visual editor when trying to add something other than simple page elements …
Even though WordPress is very user-friendly, this makes it difficult for non-technical website owners to fully manage their own content.
The fundamental issue of using HTML and shortcodes to create content in the default WordPress WYSIWYG editor can be summarized by asking 2 questions:
1) Speed – How long will it take to build a web page using the editor?
2) Abstraction – How closely does the content in the editor match the “front end” content when you are creating or editing a page?
As you can see from the above image, what you see in the editor looks nothing like what you see in the front end. This means that users need to abstract what the content will look like when working with sophisticated layouts. Other solutions require multiple steps before you can start configuring your page layout, or endlessly switching tabs and performing updates to see how your content is progressing, which then impacts how fast you can create your content, as you wait for for your updated content to load.
A number of WordPress web developers have tried to come up with a range of solutions with the objective of making the visual editor easier. Some of these range from WordPress plugins you can add to your site that add new functionality to the editor, to WordPress themes that come with built-in features like drag and drop editing …
(WordPress “drag and drop” editors aim to make creating complex page layouts easier!)
Some solutions combine so many page-building features, that users end up with complicated-looking front end content editors …
Many of these alternative editors work fine, but they don’t really address the fundamental challenge of 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 become very frustrating.
Ask yourself this …
If there were no technical constraints, how would you like to build and edit your pages?
Now, imagine this …
- You see something in the content that needs correction so you, just click on the content and start changing it. Your content is instantly edited.
- You just drag and drop elements around the page, and see them exactly as they will display on the front end without having to mentally visualize any shortcodes or HTML.
- You have an idea for a specific piece of content that you would like to create, so you immediately start typing, and your page gets built on the fly, with no delays, no tab switching, and no waiting for new content to republish and reload.
Would this not be the ideal way to build content for your website? A true WYSIWYG content editor where all you have to do is click-to-edit and drag and drop elements around the pages?
(Imagine being able to create complex pages quickly 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 Builder Plugin – The Simplest, Most Intuitive WYSIWYG Content Editor For WordPress Websites
Plugin Description
Thrive Content Builder is a ground-breaking WordPress plugin that gives you complete control over every aspect of your web page design using a click-to-edit and drag and drop content editor.
The Thrive Content Builder plugin provides WordPress users with a new and exciting way to speed up the process of adding great content to WordPress web sites.
Once installed, Thrive Content Builder adds a visual content editor and an item menu that lets you click, then drag and drop elements to your web page …
(Thrive Content Builder adds a new visual content editing option to your WordPress site)
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.
We will take a look at all of the above plugins and how these exciting features work seamlessly together to help you easily transform and improve your web site and create awesome marketing pages, streamlined landing pages and engaging content.
Thrive Content Builder Plugin
You can easily add content to your web pages using drag and drop elements …
Every element on your page can be created with “drag and drop” and “click-to-edit” ease …
Once elements have been positioned on a page, you can then edit or customize these without going through additional steps or opening more option windows …
The built-in Landing Pages editor also lets you work inside beautiful landing pages that can just as easily be edited or customized …
Thrive Content and Landing Page Builder is simple, easy to use, and ideal for all WordPress users at all levels. In fact, designing pages and working on content with Thrive Content Builder and Landing Pages installed is so effortlessly simple, that the developers guarantee that you will never look back once you start using it
For more details, visit the plugin site here: Thrive Content Builder
The integrated Thrive Content Builder plugin was created by the same team that developed Thrive Leads, another excellent plugin we’ve reviewed on this site.
Go here for more information about using this plugin:
Benefits Of Using Thrive Content Builder
Below are just a few of the benefits of using Thrive Content Builder to speed up your page design and content creation process:
Ready To Start Using In Very Little Time
Thrive Content Builder is quite easy to install. Simply upload the plugin file to your Plugins folder via your WordPress administrator section and activate.
Edit Content In Real Time
Thrive Content Builder is is not only really simple and intuitive to use, it also lets you edit content in real-time.
What You See Is Truly What You Get
With Thrive Content Builder installed, what you see on the “back end” as you work within the content editor – fonts, elements, page layouts, etc. is exactly what you get on the front end of your site.
Additional benefits and advantages include the following:
- Eye-Catching Layouts With Drag & Drop Ease: Create any type of layout you can imagine with drag-and-drop ease.
- Add Design Elements Without Short Codes: With the Thrive Content Builder plugin you not only get an amazing drag and drop WordPress content editor, but the plugin also includes a very decent collection of functional and eye-catching web design elements that you can customizable and add to your layouts without using shortcodes, for e.g.: columns, borderless content, buttons, HTML code insert boxes, etc.
- Ideal For Non-Technical Users: Not having to wait for pages to reload frees up your attention and allows you to be more focused while you build or edit your content or click through multiple steps to get what you need done.
(Add, edit and customize web page elements like testimonial boxes, content toggle, styled lists, buttons, code insert boxes, etc.)
Features
Thrive Content Builder offers site owners a number of features. Here are just a few of these:
- All WordPress Content Functionality Is Preserved: You have access to all of the regular WordPress editing options that you are used to (e.g. underline, paragraph formatting, font styles, etc.),
- Drag And Drop Elements Menu: The plugin adds a “drag and drop” list of elements to your post or page screen for creating and editing content.
- Conversion-Boosting Elements: The plugin comes with a range of attention-grabbing and customizable elements that will help you increase the effectiveness of your sales pages, including buttons and call-to-action elements, testimonials, and guarantees. In addition to being customizable, various elements also offer multiple design options.
- Responsive Element Design: Add mobile-friendly columns, boxes, dividers, e.g. which will adjust to display great on different device screens.
- Add Animation To Your 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 web 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 gives you conversion-optimized web page templates)
Thrive Landing Pages – Benefits
- Everything is hosted on your own WordPress site
- Save time designing stunning web pages for your WordPress site
- 100% conversion-optimized web page templates
- No technical skills required
- Works with any 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 professionally designed, conversion optimized web page templates and fully customizable …
(Landing page template sets that work together logically and use the same conversion-optimized design language)
There are over thirty templates available, with more templates being worked on. In addition to the templates that are currently available, expect to see new templates in the future for email lead generation, sales pages, training pages, personal branding pages, webinar pages and more.
Fully Customizable And Flexible Landing Page Template Sets
Typically, in order to have a fully customizable landing page template, you would need to either hire a web developer 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 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 beautiful pre-built web pages that are fully optimized and ready to go, and complete design freedom that lets you change and customize any aspect of your page template …
With the landing page template sets included with this plugin, you can:
- Change text in any button, headline, bullet point, etc.
- Delete text, images or any other part of your landing page
- Change the background image and background colours
- Edit the color of text, links, buttons, etc.
- Use your own fonts
- Select your own images and graphics
- Edit content area size
- Rearrange the order of web page elements
- Translate pages into a different language
- Add custom content in your pages
- Start with a blank page and create your own page templates, or even build your own library of custom landing page templates.
(Change and customize any element of your page)
Transform Your Web Site Into A Marketing Machine With Thrive Lightbox
The Thrive plugin package also includes the Thrive Lightbox plugin, which lets you add fully customizable 2-step opt-in forms and events to your WordPress site …
(Add lead capture forms and animation to your WordPress pages with Thrive Lightbox)
Thrive Lighbox 2-Step Opt-in Forms
A 2-step opt-in process can help increase your conversion rates. Visitors click on an image or button, and then they are presented with your opt-in form …
(2-step opt-in forms help to increase your conversion rates.)
Event Manager
An “event” consists of a trigger and an action. You can make opt-in forms appear when your visitor clicks or hovers 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 effects (e.g. zoom out, slide in from right to left, roll in, etc.
(Set up and manage events on your marketing pages with the Thrive Lightbox plugin)
Lightboxes and events are created automatically for your landing pages, but you also have complete control over your events, triggers and design.
User Testimonials
Here are some of the testimonials and feedback that plugin users have published about the Thrive Content Builder plugin:
”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 WordPress theme, not just with Thrive Landing Pages. You cannot use Thrive Content Builder to edit content on existing pages or posts that were not created with the plugin.
You can add shortcodes inside Thrive Content Builder or Thrive Landing Pages and they will be displayed correctly on on your web site.
Thrive Lightbox works with any content built with Thrive Content Builder.
Product Support
Thrive Landing Pages and Content Builder provides free updates, new landing pages and upcoming features. The plugin developers are constantly working on adding new features and improving existing ones.
Thrive plugins are very well-supported, and users get unlimited software upgrades, plus one year unlimited support with their purchase, backed by a risk-free, thirty day, complete money-back guarantee.
This is an exciting product that just keeps getting better.
Plugin 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 Licensing – This edition lets you configure the plugin on one website only. Price includes full feature set, unlimited updates and one year of unlimited support. Cost = $59.00.
- Unlimited Sites License – This option lets you run the plugin on all of your personal web sites. Includes full feature set, unlimited updates and one year of unlimited support. Price = $87.00.
- Agency Licensing – Use on your websites & on all your client websites. Pricing includes access to Thrive Content Builder, plus all Thrive Themes & Thrive Plugins. Cost = $247.00 per year.
Please Note: Pricing details of Thrive Content Builder depends on whether there are any promotions or limited-time specials being offered. Presently, the product is selling for the amounts shown above. This may or may not be the actual price charged by the product seller when you visit the plugin website and you may be shown additional upsells or one-time offers after your purchase.
Check the plugin’s website for the latest pricing information:
Additional Info
The developers of the Thrive Content Builder and Landing Pages plugin 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 the time-saving benefits of ready-made web page elements and beautiful, conversion-optimized template sets that help to speed up content creation, and on the other hand, you have complete control over your design process and the freedom to edit anything and everything on your page, using the plugin’s click-to-edit and drag and drop features, that allows you to see how the content you are working on will appear to visitors after being published.
For a demo video of the plugin, including installation instructions and tutorials, FAQs, customer helpdesk, contact details and more, visit the plugin website.
Install This Plugin …
If you want to edit something, simply 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, you drag it and drop it into its new position. There are no additional steps involved.
If you want to transform and improve your web site and create amazing sales pages, streamlined landing pages and engaging content, Thrive Landing Pages and Content Builder delivers an incredible conversion-boosting package with a single, inexpensive plugin.
For more information, check out the plugin here:
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