WordPress has evolved from being just a simple blogging tool into a tool being used to design all types of web pages – direct sales pages, product showcase pages, local business pages, etc.
Whatever you can imagine, someone is bound to be already building it using WordPress!
This article will help you discover the fastest way to build beautiful layouts in WordPress web sites.
Drag And Drop Content Editors For WordPress
Is The WordPress Editor Meeting All Of Your Content Creation Needs?
Using the default WordPress visual content editor to build or edit sophisticated content elements can be quite difficult.
(The WordPress visual content editor is great for adding, formatting and editing “linear” text and media, but adding more complex page elements can be quite challenging!)
For example, let’s say you want to create something like the layout shown below …
To create the above layout, users would need to insert shortcodes into the content for each page element they want to display on the web page …
Typically, this is not an issue … unless you want to change the layout (for example, move some of the content from box 1 into box 2, or change the background color in box 1 from dark green to dark red. Then, you’re stuck having to mess around with page code.
The WordPress editor is supposed to be an easy-to-use WYSIWYG editor, but as you can see, when working with complex layouts, often what you see in the WordPress content editor may not be the same as what you are going to get when the page gets published …
(“What You See” isn’t always “What You Get” … unless you can visualize code!)
In some situations, users could even be better off working inside the WordPress text editor tab instead of the visual editor when trying to add something other than simple layouts …
Even though WordPress is very user-friendly, this makes it hard for non-technical website owners to have full control of their own content.
The fundamental challenge about using HTML and shortcodes to create content with WordPress can be summarized by asking two questions:
1) Speed – How long does it take to build a page using this editor?
2) Abstraction – How closely does the content in the editor resemble 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 doesn’t look at all like what you see in the front end. This means that users need to mentally translate what the content will look like when working with sophisticated layouts. Other solutions require taking a number of steps before you can begin configuring your page layout, or endlessly switching tabs and performing updates to see how your content is coming along, which then affects how quickly you can create your content, as you wait for for your updated content to load.
A number of WordPress developers have come up with a range of solutions to try to address this issue. Some of these solutions range from stand alone plugins you can add to 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 complex page design features, that users need to learn how to work with complicated-looking front end editors …
Many of these alternative solutions work fine, but they still don’t address the fundamental issue of using HTML and shortcodes as described earlier. 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 your content to look “just right” quickly, this can become really frustrating.
Ask yourself this …
If there were no technical constraints, how would you like your web page editor to work?
Now, imagine the following scenario …
- You spot something in the content that needs to be changed so you, simply click on the content and start writing. Your content has been instantly changed.
- You just drag and drop items on the page, and the page looks exactly as it will appear on the front end without having to mentally visualize code.
- You have an idea for a specific piece of content you would like to add, so you immediately begin typing, and your page gets built as you go, without delays, with no tab switching, and no waiting for new web content to refresh and reload.
Would this not be the perfect way to create content for your WordPress site? A true visual editor where all you have to do is click-to-edit and drag and drop elements around your posts and pages?
(Imagine being able to create complex page layouts 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 And Landing Pages
Plugin Description
Thrive Content Builder is a truly intuitive click-to-edit drag and drop content and landing page builder for WordPress.
The Thrive Content Builder plugin provides WordPress users with a new and exciting way to speed up the process of creating content on.
Once installed, the plugin adds a visual content editor with a sidebar menu that lets you click, then drag and drop design elements on your page …
(Thrive Content Builder adds a new content editing option to your WordPress site)
The Thrive Content Builder 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.
Let’s examine each of the above plugins and how all of this exciting functionality works together to help you easily transform and improve your website and create amazing sales pages and engaging content.
Thrive Content Builder
Thrive Content Builder lets you easily add complex design layouts to your web pages using drag and drop elements …
Every aspect of your web page can be created using “drag and drop” and “click-to-edit” …
Once you have placed elements on your page, you can then further edit these without having to go through multiple steps or switching screens …
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 the plugin installed is so effortlessly easy, that the developers warn that you’ll never look at creating content the same way once you start using it
For more details, visit the plugin site here: Thrive Content Builder
The integrated Thrive Landing Pages and Content Builder plugin was created by the same team that developed Thrive Leads, another fantastic plugin for WordPress that we have recommended on this site.
To read more about this plugin, go here:
Benefits
Here are just some of the benefits of using Thrive Content Builder to speed up your page design and content creation process:
Quick And Simple To Install And Configure. Be Up And Running In No Time.
Thrive Content Builder installs like any regular plugin. Just upload it to your Plugin folder via your WP dashboard and activate.
Edit Content In Real Time
Thrive Content Builder is is not only simple and intuitive to use, it also lets you create and edit content in real-time.
A Truly Visual Editor
With Thrive Content Builder installed, what you see on the “back end” as you work within the content editor – typefaces, visual elements, layouts, etc. is exactly what your visitors will see on the front end of your site.
Some additional plugin benefits include the following:
- Beautiful Web Page Layouts With Drag-And-Drop Ease: Create any type of layout you can imagine with intuitive drag-and-drop functionality.
- Design Elements Included: With Thrive Content Builder you not only get a visually exciting click-to-edit content editor, but the plugin also includes a jaw-dropping collection of web design elements that you can customizable and use on your web pages without using short codes, such as pricing tables, borderless content, dividers, code insert boxes, etc.
- Distraction-Free Content Creation: Not having to deal with technical stuff for your updated content to load frees up your attention and allows you to build the pages your business needs, quickly and without having to mess with code or click through multiple layers of menus to get what you want done.
(Easily add, edit and customize page elements like testimonials, content toggle, guarantee boxes, call to action buttons, custom HTML and CSS, etc.)
Features
Thrive Content Builder provides WordPress users many features. Below we have listed just some:
- Regular Content Editor Functionality Is Preserved: You have all of the built-in WordPress text editing options that you are used to (e.g. underlines, paragraph centering, heading styles, 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 when creating or editing content.
- Conversion-Boosting Elements: The plugin includes various attention-grabbing and customizable elements that will help you increase your conversions, including buttons and call-to-action elements, testimonial boxes, and guarantees. In addition to customization options, various elements also offer multiple design options.
- Responsive Element Design: Add mobile-friendly elements like column layouts, text boxes, content section dividers, e.g. which will display correctly on devices with differently sized screens.
- Add Animation To Pages: Thrive Content Builder’s Event Manager feature lets you create animated page content, trigger lightboxes and more!
(Add Animated Elements To Your Web Pages)
Thrive Landing Pages – Landing Page Templates
Landing page sets are web page templates that work together logically and use the same conversion-optimized design language to take your visitors all the way from initial 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 designing and customizing pages
- 100% conversion-optimized page templates
- No coding skills required
- Works with any WordPress theme
Thrive Landing Pages and Content Builder 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 …
(Thrive Landing Pages provides sets of templates that work together logically and use the same conversion-optimized design language)
There are over thirty templates available, with more templates planned for future 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 Landing Page Template Sets
Normally, in order to have a fully customizable landing page template, you would need to either hire a web site 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 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 stunning pre-designed page templates that are fully optimized and ready to go, and complete design freedom that allows you to change or customize anything on the page templates …
With the landing page templates included with this plugin, you can:
- Change text in any button, bullet point, headline, etc.
- Remove text, images or any other part of the landing page
- Change the background image or background colours
- Edit the color of buttons, links, text, etc.
- Select your own fonts
- Select your own images and graphics
- Change the size of the content area
- Change the order of elements on the pages
- Translate pages into a different language
- Add custom content anywhere in the pages
- Start with a blank page and create your own page templates, or even build a custom landing pages library.
(Change and customize any element of your page templates)
Thrive Lightbox Plugin – Transform Your WordPress Website Into A Powerful Marketing Machine
The Thrive plugin package also includes the Thrive Lightbox plugin, which lets you add fully configurable 2-step opt-in forms and animated objects to your pages …
(Add opt-in forms and animation to your WordPress site with Thrive Lightbox)
Thrive Lighbox 2-Step Opt-in Forms
A 2-step opt-in process can improve your conversion rates. Visitors click on an image or button, and then they are presented with your opt-in form …
(Visitors click on a button and 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 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 page, using a range of effects (e.g. zoom out, slide in from right to left, roll out, etc.
(Set up and manage events on your marketing 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.
Feedback From Users
Here are a couple of the testimonials and comments that plugin customers have published about Thrive Content Builder:
“I have had nothing but the best experience imaginable with this tool since I purchased it. This is by far one of, if not the best plug-in I have purchase to date and it has definitely made working with WordPress a whole new experience. Jim Bond”
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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”
Thrive Content Builder Plugin – Tips
Thrive Content Builder works with any theme in WordPress, not just with Thrive Landing Pages. 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 be displayed correctly when published.
Thrive Lightbox works with any content built using Thrive Content Builder.
Thrive Content Builder Plugin Support
Thrive Landing Pages and Content Builder Plugin provides free updates, new landing pages and upcoming features. The Thrive team is constantly working on adding new features and improving existing ones.
Thrive products are well-supported, and users get unlimited upgrades, and 1 year unlimited support with their purchase, backed by a no-risk, 30 day, full refund guarantee.
This is an exciting product for WordPress users that just keeps 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 License – This allows you to use the plugin on one domain only. Includes full feature set, unlimited updates and 1 year of unlimited support. Cost = $59.00.
- Unlimited Sites License – This allows you to install the plugin on all of your personal websites. Includes full feature set, unlimited updates and 1 year of unlimited support. Price = $87.00.
- Agency Licensing – This license lets you activate the plugin on all of your own websites and all client websites. Includes access to Thrive Content Builder, plus all Thrive Themes & Thrive Plugins. Price = $247.00 per year.
Note: The price of Thrive Content Builder can vary, depending on whether there are any promotions or limited-time special offers. The above reflects the current pricing when this article was written. This may not be the actual price charged by the software developer when you visit the product site and you may be shown additional upsells or one-time offers after your purchase.
Check the plugin’s website for the current pricing:
Additional Information
The developers of the Thrive Content Builder and Landing Pages plugin emphatically 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 conversion-optimized templates that help to speed up your content creation, and on the other hand, you have complete control over your design process and the freedom to change anything and everything on your page, using the plugin’s click-to-edit and drag and drop features, which allows you to work unhindered by overly complicated steps.
For a demo video showing plugin usage, including installation instructions and tutorials, FAQs, support helpdesk, contact details and more, visit the Thrive plugins website.
Get The Plugin …
If you want to edit something, simply 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, 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 presence and create amazing marketing pages, streamlined landing pages and engaging content, this plugin delivers an incredible conversion-boosting package with a single, inexpensive plugin.
For more information, visit the plugin website here:
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