WordPress has evolved from being just a simple blogging application to a tool being used to create all kinds of websites.
Whatever you can imagine, somewhere around the world someone is bound to be already building it with WordPress!
This article will help you discover the simplest and most intuitive WYSIWYG editor for WordPress websites.
Drag And Drop Content Editors For WordPress
Is The WordPress Visual Editor Meeting All Of Your Content Creation And Editing Needs?
Using the built-in WordPress content editor to create or edit complex content elements can be quite difficult.
(The default WordPress visual content editor is great for adding, formatting and editing conventional content, but adding complex layouts can be challenging!)
For example, let’s say you want to create something like the layout shown below …
To create the above boxes with text and buttons, you would normally have to add short codes to the content for every single page element you want to create …
Generally, this is not really an issue … unless you have to change your layout (for example, move part of the content from box 3 into box 2, or change the button in a box from bright red to light blue. Then, you’re stuck having to mess around with code.
The WordPress visual content editor is supposed to give users an easy-to-use WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) content editor, but as you can see, if you are trying to create 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 instances, you could even be better off working directly with the source html itself instead of the WordPress WYSIWYG editor when trying to create non-linear layouts …
Even though WordPress is the most user-friendly CMS platform available, this makes it difficult for non-technical users to fully manage their own content.
The fundamental challenge with having to use HTML and shortcodes to create content in 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 at all like what you see in the front end. This means that users need to abstract what the content will look like when working with complex layouts. Other solutions require taking multiple steps before you can begin 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 tried to come up with various solutions to try and make the visual editor easier. Some of these solutions range from standalone plugins you can install on your site that add new functionality to the editor, to 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 require so many page-building features, that users end up with complicated-looking front end content editors …
Many of these editors work, but they don’t 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 really frustrating after a while.
Ask yourself this …
If there were no technical constraints, how would you like to build and edit your pages?
Now that you’ve asked this question, visualize this …
- You see something in your content that needs to be changed so you, just click on the content and start changing it. Your content is instantly fixed.
- You can drag and drop elements on the page, and the page looks exactly as it will appear on the front end without having to mentally translate any shortcodes or HTML.
- You have an idea for a specific item of content you’d like to create, so you just start typing, and you build your web page as you go, with no delays, no switching of tab browsers, and without waiting for new web content to refresh.
Would this not be the perfect way to create content for your web site? A true visual editor where all you have to do is click-to-edit and drag and drop elements around your page?
(Imagine being able to create complex web pages quickly 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 And Landing Pages
Plugin Description
Thrive Content Builder is a unique plugin for WordPress that lets website owners easily build and change content on their posts and pages with a click-to-edit and drag and drop content editor.
The Thrive Content Builder plugin is a new and incredibly easy way to set up conversion-focused pages on your WordPress website.
Once installed, Thrive Content Builder adds a visual content editor and a menu that lets you select, then drag and drop elements on your web page …
(Thrive Content Builder adds a new visual content editing option to your WordPress site)
Thrive Content Builder And Landing Pages 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.
We will take an in-depth look at all of the above plugins and how all of this functionality works seamlessly together to help you transform and improve your web presence and create amazing marketing pages and content.
Thrive Content Builder
You can easily add content to your web pages using drag and drop elements …
Every aspect of your page can be designed and changed using “drag and drop” and “click-to-edit” …
Once elements have been positioned on the page, you can then continue to customize them without having to go through multiple steps or opening extra option windows …
You can also create stunning landing pages that can also be easily customized …
Thrive Content Builder and Landing Pages is simple, easy to use, and ideal for all WordPress users at all levels. In fact, working on content with the plugin installed is so effortlessly simple, that the developers guarantee that once you start using it, it will ruin the experience of using all other content editors forever, and you’ll never look back!
For more details about the plugin go here: Thrive Content Builder
The integrated Thrive Content and Landing Page Builder plugin was created by the same team that developed Thrive Leads, another fantastic plugin we’ve written about on this site.
Go here to learn more about using this plugin:
Benefits
Below we have listed just some of the many benefits of using Thrive Content Builder to speed up content creation:
Fast And Simple To Install And Configure. Be Up And Running In Minutes.
Thrive Content Builder installs like any other plugin. Simply upload the plugin file to your Plugins folder via your WP dashboard and activate.
Real-Time Content Content Editing
Thrive Content Builder is very simple to use and lets you edit 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, elements, layouts, etc. is exactly what you get in the front end of your site.
Additional benefits include:
- Attractive Page Layouts With Drag & Drop Ease: Create any layout you can imagine with drag-and-drop ease.
- Add Customizable Elements Without Using Shortcodes: With Thrive Content Builder you not only get an amazing drag and drop WordPress content editor, but the plugin also includes a very decent collection of functional and attractive web design elements that you can customizable and insert into your layouts without using short codes, for e.g.: tabbed content, table of contents builder, call to action buttons, responsive maps, etc.
- Ideal For Non-Technical Users: Not having to constantly switch tabs as you edit content and then wait for the updates to load frees up your attention and allows you to build the web pages your business needs, quickly and without having to deal with code or click through multiple steps to get what you want done.
(Create, edit and customize page elements like testimonials, pricing tables, table of contents builder, call to action buttons, responsive Google maps, etc.)
Thrive Content Builder Features
Thrive Content Builder offers WP users many features. Below we have listed just a few of these:
- Regular WordPress Content Functionality Is Preserved: You have all of the regular WordPress content editing options that you are used to (e.g. underlines, justified paragraphs, heading styles, etc.),
- Drag And Drop Elements: The plugin adds a “drag and drop” table of multi-style elements to your post or page screen for creating or editing content.
- Conversion-Boosting Elements: The plugin includes various attention-grabbing and customizable elements that will help you increase the effectiveness of your sales pages, including buttons and call-to-action elements, testimonial boxes, and guarantees. In addition to being customizable, various elements also offer multiple design options.
- Responsive Element Design: Add responsive elements like columns, guarantee boxes, content section dividers, e.g. which will display great on different-sized screens.
- Add Animation To Pages: The plugin’s Event Manager feature lets you create animated page content, trigger lightboxes and more!
(Add Animated Elements To Your Pages)
Thrive Landing Pages Plugin – Landing Page Sets
Landing page template sets are web page 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 plugin gives you conversion-optimized page templates)
Thrive Landing Pages Plugin – Benefits
- Hosted on your own WordPress site
- Save time building and customizing web pages
- 100% conversion-optimized page templates
- No coding skills required
- Works with any theme
Thrive Content Builder and Landing Pages not only can be used to create beautiful-looking content in your WordPress posts and pages, but you can also choose from dozens of beautifully designed, landing 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 30+ 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, lesson pages, personal branding pages, webinar pages and more.
Customize Your Landing Page Template
Typically, to be able to have completely customizable landing page templates, you would need to either pay 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 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 beautiful pre-designed pages that are fully optimized and ready to go, and complete design freedom that allows you to change and edit anything on your page …
The landing page template sets included with this plugin let you do the following:
- Modify text in all headlines, bullet points, buttons, etc.
- Remove text, images or any other part of the landing page
- Replace the background image or colour
- Change the color of links, text, buttons, etc.
- Use your own fonts
- Use your own images and graphics
- Modify content area size
- Change the order of elements on the pages
- Translate everything on the page into a different language
- Add any type of custom content anywhere in the pages
- Use pre-designed, customized pages, or create your own pages from scratch and save them as new web page templates.
(Change and customize any element of your page template)
Transform Your Site Into A Marketing Machine With Thrive Lightbox Plugin
The Thrive package also includes Thrive Lightbox, which lets you add fully configurable 2-step opt-in forms and events to your web site …
(Add opt-in forms and animated objects to your marketing pages with Thrive Lightbox)
2-Step Opt-in Forms
A 2-step opt-in process helps improve 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 your visitor clicks or hovers 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 a range of effects (e.g. zoom out, slide in from top to bottom, roll in, etc.
(Set up and manage events on your pages with the Thrive Lightbox plugin)
A lightbox and event is created automatically for your landing pages, but you also have complete control over all events, triggers and design.
User Feedback
Below are a few of the testimonials and comments that customers have published 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”
Useful 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 with the plugin installed.
You can add WordPress short codes inside Thrive Content Builder or Thrive Landing Pages and they will display correctly on on your site.
Thrive Lightbox works with any content built with Thrive Content Builder.
Thrive Content Builder Support
Thrive Content Builder Plugin 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 plugins are very well-supported, and users get unlimited software updates, and 1 year unlimited support with their purchase, backed by a risk-free, 30 day, complete money-back guarantee.
This is an exciting product for WordPress users that will just keep getting better.
Plugin 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 lets you run the plugin on a single website. Includes full feature set, unlimited updates and one year of unlimited support. Cost = $59.00.
- Unlimited Sites Edition – This license allows you to set up the plugin on all of your personal domains. Price includes full feature set, unlimited updates and 1 year of unlimited support. Cost = $87.00.
- Agency License – Use on all your sites and on all your client web sites. Pricing includes access to Thrive Content Builder, plus all Thrive Themes & Thrive Plugins. Cost = $247.00 per year.
Note: Current pricing for the Thrive Content Builder product can vary, depending on whether there are any promotions or limited-time special offers. Currently, the plugin sells for the prices shown above. This may or may not be the actual price charged by the software author when you visit the product website and there may be additional upsells or one-time offers after your purchase.
Check the plugin’s website for the latest pricing:
Additional Plugin Info
The developers of the Thrive Landing Pages and Content Builder plugin repeatedly 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 template sets that help speed up content design, and on the other hand, you also have complete control over the design process and the freedom to edit everything on your page, using the plugin’s visual content editor, that lets you see exactly how the content you are working on will appear to visitors when published.
For demo videos of the plugin in action, including help documentation and tutorials, FAQs, customer helpdesk, contact details and more, visit the Thrive website.
We Highly Recommend This …
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 instantly. If you want to move something, just drag it and drop it into its new position. There are no complicated steps involved.
If you want to transform and improve your website and create awesome marketing pages and content, Thrive Landing Pages and Content Builder delivers an incredible conversion-boosting package with a single, inexpensive plugin.
For complete details, check out the plugin here:
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