WordPress has evolved from being just a simple blogging application to a tool that is now being used to design all types of pages – landing pages, portfolio pages, business pages, etc.
Whatever you can think of, somewhere around the world someone is probably already building it with WordPress!
This article will help you discover how to create beautiful web page layouts with drag & drop ease in WordPress.
Drag And Drop Content Editors For WordPress
Does The Default WordPress Editor Meet All Of Your Web Design Needs?
Using the WordPress WYSIWYG content editor to build or edit sophisticated content elements can be quite difficult, especially for non-technical users.
(The WordPress WYSIWYG editor is great for adding, formatting and editing conventional text and media, but adding more complex content elements can be challenging!)
For example, let’s say you want to create something like the content shown below …
To create the above layout, you would need to add shortcodes to the content for every page element you want to display to visitors …
Normally, this is not really an issue … until you need to edit some part of the layout (for example, move some of the content from box 3 into box 2, or change the button inside a box from red to orange. Then, you’re stuck having to mess around with page code.
The WordPress visual content editor is supposed to provide users with an easy-to-use WYSIWYG content editor, but as you can see, when working with more complex page elements, what you see on your screen may not be the same as what you are getting when the content gets published …
(“What You See” isn’t always “What You Get” … unless you can visualize code!)
In some instances, some people argue that you may even be better off working with the source html itself instead of the WordPress visual 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 without coding skills to fully manage their own content.
The fundamental challenge about 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 this editor?
2) Abstraction – How closely does the content in the editor match the content in the “front end” when you are creating or editing a page?
As you can see from the above screenshot, what you see when working in the content editor looks nothing like what you see in the front end. This means that users have to translate mentally what the 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 updates to see how your content is progressing, which can interrupt the creative process, as you wait for your updates to reload.
Many WordPress web developers have come up with different solutions aiming to make the visual editor easier. Some of these alternative solutions range from standalone plugins you can add to your site that add new functionality to the editor, to themes that include built-in features like drag and drop editing …
(WordPress “drag and drop” editors aim to make creating complex layouts easier!)
Some solutions include so many complex page-building features, that users need to learn how to work with complicated-looking front end content editors …
Many of these editors work, but they don’t address the fundamental issue of using HTML and shortcodes as described earlier. Adding and editing sophisticated content elements 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 page content to look ”perfect” quickly, this can start to become very frustrating.
Ask yourself this …
If there were no technical constraints, how would you like your content editor to behave?
Now, imagine this …
- You see something in the content that needs changing so you, simply click on the content and start typing. Your content is then instantly edited.
- You simply drag and drop elements around the page, and see them exactly as they will display on the front end without having to mentally visualize shortcodes or HTML.
- You have an idea for some content you would like to add, so you immediately start typing, and your page gets built as you go, without delays, no switching tabs, and no waiting for new web pages to refresh and reload.
Would this not be the perfect way to build content for your WordPress web site? A true visual content editor where all you have to do is click-to-edit and drag and drop elements around the posts and pages?
(Imagine being able to create complex web pages in real-time 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 – Create Stunning Content And Beautiful Page Layouts With Drag & Drop Ease In WordPress Websites
Plugin Description
Thrive Content Builder is a truly intuitive click-to-edit drag and drop content and page creation plugin for WordPress.
Thrive Content Builder is a new and exciting way to set up conversion-focused pages on any WordPress web site.
Once installed, Thrive Content Builder adds a visual content editor and a menu that lets you click, then drag and drop elements on your web page …
(Thrive Content Builder adds a new visual editor to your WordPress site)
The Thrive Content And Landing Page 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 all of the above and how these exciting features work seamlessly together to help you transform and improve your site and create awesome sales pages and content.
Thrive Content Builder Plugin
With the 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 built with ”click-to-edit” and “drag and drop” ease …
Once you have placed elements on the page, you can then further edit or customize these without having to go through additional steps or opening new settings windows …
You can also work inside beautiful landing pages and easily edit these …
Thrive Content Builder 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 easy, that the developers guarantee that once you start using it, you’ll never look back!
More info: Thrive Content Builder
Thrive Content Builder and Thrive Landing Pages were created by the same team that developed Thrive Leads, another terrific plugin that we have previously written about on this site.
For more information about the plugin, see this page:
Plugin Benefits
Here are just some of the many benefits of using Thrive Content Builder to speed up the process of creating content for your web site:
Ready To Go To Work In No Time
Thrive Content Builder is really easy to install. Just upload it to your Plugins folder via your WP dashboard and activate.
Real-Time Content Content Editing
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 as you work within the editor – typefaces, visual elements, page layouts, etc. is exactly what your visitors will see in the front end of your site.
Some additional benefits and advantages include the following:
- Beautiful Layouts With Drag-And-Drop Ease: Create any kind of layout you can imagine with intuitive drag and drop functionality.
- Design Elements Included: With the Thrive Content Builder plugin you not only get an amazing drag and drop content builder, but the plugin also includes an impressive collection of web design elements that you can use on your content layouts without using short codes, for e.g.: content toggle, guarantee boxes, dividers, HTML code insert boxes, etc.
- More Enjoyable Content Creation: Not having to deal with technical stuff, or wait for your updated content to reload frees up your attention and allows you to be more focused while you build content or click through multiple steps to get what you want done.
(Thrive Content Builder lets you easily insert, edit and customize page elements like testimonial boxes, flat design elements, borderless content, dividers, responsive maps, etc.)
Plugin Features
Thrive Content Builder offers website owners many powerful features. Below we have listed just some of these:
- Built-In Content Editor Functionality Is Preserved: You have all of the regular content editing options that you are used to (e.g. underline, justified text, headings and font sizes, etc.),
- Drag And Drop Multi-Style Elements Menu: The plugin makes a “drag and drop” list of multi-style elements available on your post or page screen when creating and editing content.
- Conversion-Boosting Elements: The plugin includes a range of attention-grabbing and customizable elements that will help you increase your conversions, including buttons and call-to-action elements, testimonial boxes, and guarantee forms. In addition to customization options, multiple design options are also available for various elements.
- Responsive Design: Add responsive columns, text boxes, dividers, e.g. which will resize and display great on different device screens.
- Add Animation To Pages: Thrive Content Builder’s Event Manager feature lets you add 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 lets you add conversion-optimized pages to your web site)
Thrive Landing Pages Plugin – Benefits
- Everything is hosted on your own WordPress site
- Save time building and customizing landing pages
- 100% conversion-optimized landing pages
- No web coding skills needed
- Works with all themes
Thrive Content Builder and Landing Pages not only can be used to create beautiful content in your WordPress posts and pages, but you can also choose from dozens of professionally designed, conversion optimized landing page templates and fully customizable …
(Landing page sets that work together logically and use the same conversion-optimized design language)
There are 30+ templates available, with more templates planned for release. In addition to the available templates, expect to see new templates in the future for email lead generation, sales pages, training pages, personal branding pages, webinar pages and more.
Customizable Landing Page Template
Typically, in order to have a fully customizable landing page template, you would need to either pay a web site designer to do the work, or learn how to code web pages 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 mess around with 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 stunning pre-built page templates that are fully optimized and ready to go, and complete design freedom that lets you change or customize any element of your page templates …
With the landing page templates included with this plugin, you can:
- Modify text in any headline, button, bullet point, etc.
- Delete text, images or any other element of the landing page
- Replace the background image and edit colors
- Change the color of text, buttons, links, etc.
- Use your own fonts
- Select your own images and graphics
- Edit the size of the content area
- Change the order of web page elements
- Translate pages into different languages
- Add any kind of custom content in the pages
- Use pre-designed, customized pages, or create your own landing pages from scratch and save them as new page templates.
(Change or edit anything on the page)
Thrive Lightbox Plugin – Transform Your Web Site Into A Marketing Machine
The Thrive plugin package also includes Thrive Lightbox, which lets you add fully customizable 2-step opt-in forms and events to your WordPress site …
(Add lead capture forms and animated objects to your sales pages with Thrive Lightbox)
Thrive Lighbox Two-Step Opt-in Forms
A 2-step opt-in process can help 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 opt-in forms appear when when visitors click or hover 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 pages, using various effects (e.g. fade out, slide in from top to bottom, roll out, etc.
(Set up and manage events on your web pages with Thrive Lightbox)
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 Customers
Here are a couple of the testimonials and comments plugin customers have submitted regarding 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”
Useful Tips
Thrive Content Builder works with any WordPress theme, not just with the Thrive Landing Pages plugin. You cannot use Thrive Content Builder to edit content that was not created using the plugin.
You can add shortcodes inside Thrive Content Builder or Thrive Landing Pages and they will display correctly when published.
Thrive Lightbox works with any content built using Thrive Content Builder.
Support
Thrive Content Builder Plugin comes with free updates, new landing templates and upcoming features. The plugin developers are constantly working on adding new features and improving existing ones.
Thrive software is well-supported, and users get lifetime software upgrades, and 1 year unlimited support with their purchase, backed by a risk-free, thirty day, 100% money-back guarantee.
This is an exciting product that will just keep getting better.
Plugin Price
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 lets you activate the plugin on a single site. Includes full feature set, unlimited updates and 1 year of unlimited support. Price = $59.00.
- Unlimited Sites Licensing – This lets you activate the plugin on all of your personal domains. Price includes full feature set, unlimited updates and one year of unlimited support. Price = $87.00.
- Agency License – This option lets you configure the plugin on all of your own websites and your client sites. It 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 software can vary, depending on whether there are any promotions or limited-time specials being offered. The price above was current at the time this content was written. This may not be the actual price set by the plugin developer when you visit the product website and you may be shown additional upsells or one-time offers after you’ve purchased.
Check the plugin’s website for the current pricing information here:
Additional Plugin Information
The Thrive Landing Pages and Content Builder plugin developers 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 template sets that help to make designing your content faster, and on the other hand, you also have 100% control over the design process and the ability to change anything and everything on your page, using the plugin’s visual content editor, which lets you work unhindered by overly complicated steps.
For ”how to” videos of the plugin, including help documentation and tutorials, FAQs, support helpdesk, contact details and more, visit the Thrive plugins website.
Download The Plugin …
If you want to edit something, you 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, all you need to do is 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 awesome sales pages and content, Thrive Content Builder and Landing Pages delivers an incredible conversion-boosting package with a single, inexpensive plugin.
For full details, visit the plugin website:
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