WordPress has evolved from being just a simple blogging tool into a tool that can be used to create all types of websites.
Whatever you can imagine, someone is probably already building it with WordPress!
In this article you will discover the simplest, most intuitive WYSIWYG editor for WordPress web sites.
Drag And Drop Content Editors For WordPress
The WordPress Visual Content Editor – Is There A Smarter Option To Design Beautiful-Looking Web Site Pages In WordPress?
Using the default WordPress editor to create or edit sophisticated page elements can sometimes be challenging.
(The built-in WordPress visual content editor is great for adding, formatting and editing “linear” text and media, but adding complex content elements can be challenging!)
For example, if you look at the image below …
Creating the above layout in a page would require inserting something like this inside your default WordPress visual content editor …
Typically, this is not an issue … until you have to edit something in the layout (for example, move some of the content from box 1 into box 2, or replace the button inside a box from green to yellow. Then, you’re stuck having to mess around with page code or html.
The WordPress content editor is supposed to provide users with an easy-to-use WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) content editor, but as you can see, if you are creating with complex page elements, what you see on your screen may not be the same as what you are getting when your content is published …
(“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 add something other than simple layouts …
Even though WordPress is extremely easy to use, this makes it hard for WordPress users with no knowledge of HTML or CSS to fully manage their own content.
The fundamental challenge with using shortcodes and HTML to create content with WordPress can be summarized by asking 2 questions:
1) Speed – How long will it take to build a page using the editor?
2) Abstraction – How closely does the content in the ”back end” match 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 does not look even remotely similar to what you see in the front end. This means that you need to translate mentally what your content will look like when working with complex layouts. Other solutions require a number of steps before you can start 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 can impact how quickly you can create your content, as you wait for the updates to reload.
A number of WordPress developers have tried to come up with a range of solutions to try to address this issue. Some of these range from plugins you can install on 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 page layouts easier!)
Some solutions include so many complex page design features, that users need to learn how to work with complicated-looking front end content editors …
Many of these alternative editors work fine, but they don’t address the fundamental problem with using HTML and shortcodes as described earlier. Adding and editing non-linear content 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 your content to look “just right” quickly, this can start to become really frustrating.
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 the following scenario …
- You look at your content and if you see something that needs changing, just click on the content and start typing. Your content is then instantly changed.
- You can just drag and drop items on the page, and see them exactly as they will display on the front end without having to mentally translate code.
- You have an idea for some content you’d like to create, so you just begin typing, and your web page gets built as you go, without delays, with no switching tabs, and without having to wait for pages to reload.
Would that not be the perfect way to create content for your WordPress website? Just click-to-edit and drag and drop elements around your pages and posts?
(Imagine being able to create complex web pages in real-time for your web content without 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 – Create Stunning Content And Beautiful Web Page Layouts With Drag & Drop Ease In WordPress Sites
Plugin Description
Thrive Content Builder is a ground-breaking WordPress plugin that allows you to quickly add content to WordPress posts and pages with a powerful click-to-edit and drag and drop content editor.
The Thrive Content Builder plugin is a new and exciting way to set up conversion-focused pages on any WordPress website.
Once installed, Thrive Content Builder adds a visual content editor and a menu that lets you click, then drag and drop design elements on your web page …
(Thrive Content Builder adds a new editor to WordPress)
The Thrive Content Builder And Landing Pages plugin 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 each of the above and how these features work together to help you easily transform and improve your business online and create awesome marketing pages and engaging content.
Thrive Content Builder – WordPress Plugin
This plugin lets you easily add complex design layouts to your web pages using drag and drop elements …
Every element on your web page can be built and edited with ”click-to-edit” and “drag and drop” ease …
Once you have placed elements on the page, you can then easily edit them without having to go through additional steps or switching tabs …
The built-in Thrive Landing Pages also lets you create beautiful landing pages that can just as easily be edited or customized …
Thrive Content Builder is simple, easy to use, and ideal for all WordPress users at all levels. In fact, designing web pages and working on content with the Thrive Content Builder plugin installed is so amazingly simple, that the developers guarantee that once you start using it, you’ll never look back!
Go here to learn more about the plugin: Thrive Content Builder
The integrated Thrive Landing Pages and Content Builder plugin was created by the same team that developed Thrive Leads, another amazing plugin we’ve previously reviewed on this site.
See this article for more information about this plugin:
Plugin Benefits
Here we have listed just some of the many benefits and advantages of using Thrive Content Builder to speed up the process of creating content for your WordPress site:
Be Up And Running In Minutes
Thrive Content Builder installs like any other WP plugin. Just upload it to your Plugins folder via your admin account and activate.
Real-Time Content Content Creation
Thrive Content Builder is really simple and intuitive to use and lets you edit and build content in real-time.
What You See Is Really What You Get
With Thrive Content Builder installed, what you see on the “back-end” as you work within the content editor – typefaces, elements, page layouts, etc. is exactly what your visitors will see on the front end of your site.
Additional benefits of this plugin include the following:
- Stunning Layouts With Drag And Drop Ease: Create any kind 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 an easy-to-use click-to-edit WordPress content builder, but the plugin also includes a jaw-dropping collection of customizable web design elements that you can add to your content layouts without using short codes, like columns, content reveal feature, dividers, credit card icons, etc.
- Distraction-Free Content Creation: Not having to deal with technical stuff for your new content to reload frees up your attention and allows you to be more focused while you work or click through multiple layers of menus to get what you want done.
(Insert, edit and customize page elements like testimonials, flat design elements, table of contents builder, dividers, responsive video embeds, etc.)
Thrive Content Builder Features
Thrive Content Builder offers many great features to site owners. Here are just a few of these:
- Built-In WordPress Editor Functionality Is Preserved: You have access to all of the regular WordPress editing options that you are used to (e.g. bold, justified text, font styles, etc.),
- Drag And Drop Elements: The plugin adds a “drag and drop” table of multi-style elements to your post or page screen when creating and editing content.
- Conversion-Boosting Elements: The plugin provides you with a range of eye-catching and customizable elements that will help increase the effectiveness of your sales pages, including buttons and call-to-action elements, testimonials, and guarantees. In addition to being customizable, multiple design options are also available for various elements.
- Responsive Element Design: Add mobile-friendly elements like column layouts, text boxes, dividers, e.g. which will resize and display correctly on different device screens.
- Add Animation To Web Pages: The Event Manager feature lets you create animations, trigger lightboxes and more!
(Add Animated Elements To Your Web Pages)
Thrive Landing Pages Plugin – 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 signup to purchase, product download and more.
(Thrive Landing Pages plugin gives you access to conversion-optimized web page templates)
Thrive Landing Pages Plugin – Benefits
- Everything is hosted on your own WordPress site
- Save time building and customizing web pages
- 100% conversion-optimized page templates
- No tech skills required
- Works with any theme
Thrive Content and Page Builder 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 currently over thirty templates available, with more templates planned for future release. In addition to the templates that are currently available, expect to see new templates in the future for email lead generation, sales pages, course pages, personal branding pages, webinar pages and more.
Completely Customizable And Flexible Landing Page Template
Typically, to be able to fully customize a landing page template, you would need to either pay a web site developer to do the work, or learn web coding languages like HTML and CSS and figure out how to edit the page code 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-built web pages that are fully optimized and ready to go, and complete design freedom that lets you change or customize any element of the page templates …
The landing page templates included with this plugin let you do the following:
- Modify text in any headline, bullet point, button, etc.
- Delete text, images or any other element of your landing page
- Replace any background images and edit colors
- Change the color of text, buttons, links, etc.
- Choose your own fonts
- Select your own images
- Edit the size of the content area
- Rearrange the order of elements on the pages
- Translate pages into different languages
- Add custom content anywhere in your pages
- Use pre-designed, customized pages, or create your own web pages from scratch and save them as new page templates.
(Change or edit any element of the page templates)
Thrive Lightbox Plugin – Transform Your Website Into A Marketing Machine
The Thrive package includes the Thrive Lightbox plugin, which lets you add fully customizable two-step opt-in forms and animated elements to your site …
(Add lead capture forms and events to your sales pages with the Thrive Lightbox plugin)
Two-Step Opt-in Forms
A two-step opt-in process helps to increase your conversion rates. Visitors click on an image or button, and then they are presented with your opt-in form …
(two-step opt-in forms can 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 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 attention-getting elements on your pages, using a range of animation effects (e.g. zoom in, slide in from left to right, roll out, etc.
(Set up and manage events on your WordPress pages with the Thrive Lightbox plugin)
Lightboxes and events are created automatically for your landing pages, but you also have complete control over all events, triggers and design.
Feedback From Users
Below are a few of the testimonials 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”
***
”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 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 shortcodes inside Thrive Content Builder or Thrive Landing Pages and they will be displayed correctly when published.
Thrive Lightbox works with any content built with Thrive Content Builder.
Thrive Content Builder Support
Thrive Content Builder and Landing Pages provides free updates, new landing templates and upcoming features. The Thrive team is constantly working on adding new features and improving existing ones.
Thrive products are very well-supported, and users get lifetime software upgrades, plus 1 year unlimited support with their purchase, backed by a no-risk, 30 day, full money-back guarantee.
This is an exciting product that just keeps 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 enables you to set up the plugin on a single web site. Includes full feature set, unlimited updates and one year of unlimited support. Cost = $59.00.
- Unlimited Sites Licensing – This license option lets you install the plugin on all of your personal web sites. Pricing includes full feature set, unlimited updates and 1 year of unlimited support. Price = $87.00.
- Agency License Edition – Use on all your websites and on client sites. Cost includes access to Thrive Content Builder, plus all Thrive Themes & Thrive Plugins. Cost = $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 prices shown above. This may or may not be the actual pricing set by the product seller 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 current pricing details:
Additional 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 page elements and beautiful, conversion-optimized templates that help to make designing your content faster, and on the other hand, you also have 100% control over the design process and the freedom to edit everything on your page, using the plugin’s click-to-edit and drag and drop features, which lets you get things done without having to keep switching tabs or going through multiple steps.
For a demo video of the plugin, including help documentation and tutorials, FAQs, customer helpdesk, contact details and more, visit the Thrive plugins website.
The Bottom Line …
If you want to edit something, you just click on the element and start editing. If you want to change something, do it, and 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 unnecessary steps involved.
If you want to transform and improve your site and create amazing marketing 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 full details, check out the plugin here:
***
