WordPress has evolved from being just a simple blogging tool to a tool being used to create all types of web sites.
Whatever you can think of, somewhere around the world someone is bound to be already building it with WordPress!
This article will help you discover the fastest way to create stunning content and beautiful page layouts in WordPress.
Drag And Drop Content Editors For WordPress
The WordPress Visual Content Editor – Is There An Easier Tool For Creating Amazing-Looking Content In WordPress?
Using the built-in WordPress visual content editor to create or edit complex page elements can sometimes be difficult for non-technical users.
(The built-in WordPress content editor is great for adding, formatting and editing conventional text and images, but adding more complex page elements can be quite challenging!)
For example, if you look at the screenshot below …
Adding the above page elements would require adding something like this into your WordPress visual content editor …
Normally, this is not an issue … until you have to change your layout (for example, move part of the content from box 3 into box 2, or change the background colour inside box 1 from dark green to maroon. Then, you’re stuck having to mess around with page code or html.
The WordPress visual content editor is supposed to be an easy-to-use WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) content editor, but as you can see, when working with more complex layouts, often what you see on your screen may not be the same as what you are going to get when the web page gets published …
(“What You See” isn’t always “What You Get” … unless you can visualize code!)
In some situations, users may even be better off working with the html source itself instead of the WYSIWYG editor when trying to build non-linear page elements …
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 about using HTML and shortcodes to create content with WordPress can be summarized by asking the following questions:
1) Speed – How long does it take to create a web page using this editor?
2) Abstraction – How closely does the content in the ”back end” resemble the “front end” content when you are creating or editing a page?
As you can see from the above image, 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 abstract what the content will look like when working with sophisticated layouts. Other solutions require a number of steps before you can begin configuring your page layout, or endlessly switching browser tabs and performing tweaks and updates to see how your content is coming along, which can affect how fast you can create your content, as you wait for your updates to load.
A number of WordPress web developers have come up with various solutions to make the visual editor easier. Some of these alternative solutions range from WordPress plugins you can add to your site that add new functionality to the editor, to WP themes that include built-in features like drag and drop editing …
(WordPress “drag and drop” editors aim to make creating complex page layouts easier!)
Some solutions end up including so many page design features, that users end up with complicated-looking front end editors …
Many of these solutions work fine, but they don’t really address the fundamental problem with using shortcodes and HTML as described earlier. Creating and adding 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 to create or edit complex layouts quickly, this can start to become quite frustrating after a while.
Ask yourself this …
If there were no technical constraints, how would you like your page editor to function?
Now, visualize this …
- You spot something in the content that needs changing so you, simply click on the content and start changing it. Your content is instantly changed.
- You can drag and drop elements around the page, and the page looks exactly as it will appear on the front end without having to mentally abstract from shortcodes or HTML.
- You have an idea for a specific item of content you’d like to add, so you immediately start typing, and your page gets built as you go, with no delays, without switching of tab browsers, and without waiting for new web content to reload.
Would that not be the perfect way to build content for your web site? A true WYSIWYG content builder where all you have to do is click-to-edit and drag and drop elements around the pages and posts?
(Imagine being able to create complex pages in real-time for your web content without 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 – Create Beautiful Layouts With Drag & Drop Ease In WordPress
Plugin Description
Thrive Content Builder is a truly intuitive WordPress click-to-edit drag-and-drop content creator.
The Thrive Content Builder plugin provides WordPress users with a new and incredibly easy way to set up conversion-focused pages on any WordPress web site.
Once installed, the plugin adds a visual content editor and a menu that lets you drag and drop design elements on your web page …
(Thrive Content Builder adds a new visual content editing option to your WordPress site)
Thrive Landing Pages And Content Builder 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.
In this article we’ll take a look at each of the above and how these features work together to help you easily transform and improve your business online and create amazing sales pages and engaging content.
Thrive Content Builder – WordPress Click-To-Edit Drag And Drop Content Builder Plugin
With the Thrive Content Builder plugin, you can easily build complex web page design layouts using drag and drop elements …
Every aspect of your page can be designed and edited with ”click-to-edit” and “drag and drop” ease …
Once elements have been added to a page, you can then customize or edit these without going through multiple steps or switching tabs …
The built-in functionality of the plugin also lets you create highly attractive landing pages and easily customize these …
Thrive Content Builder and Landing Pages is simple, easy to use, and ideal for all WordPress users at all levels. In fact, designing pages with the Thrive Landing Pages and Content Builder plugin installed is so effortlessly simple, that the developers warn that you will never look at creating content the same way once you start using it
To learn more about this plugin go here: Thrive Content Builder
Thrive Content Builder and Thrive Landing Pages were created by the same team that developed Thrive Leads, another excellent plugin for WordPress we’ve reviewed on this site.
See this post for more information about the plugin:
Plugin Benefits
Below are just some of the benefits and advantages of using Thrive Content Builder to speed up content creation:
Quick And Simple To Install And Use. Ready To Use In Minutes.
Thrive Content Builder is quite easy to install. Simply upload the plugin file to your Plugins folder via your WP dashboard and activate.
Real-Time Content Content Editing
Thrive Content Builder is simple to use and lets you create, edit and add content right inside your web pages in real-time.
A Truly Visual Content Editor
With Thrive Content Builder installed, what you see as you work within the content editor – typefaces, visual elements, page layouts, etc. is exactly what your visitors will see in the front end of your site.
Some additional benefits of the plugin include the following:
- Add Eye-Catching Layouts With Drag-And-Drop Ease: Create any layout you can imagine with drag-and-drop ease.
- Design Elements Included: With the Thrive Content Builder plugin you not only get a visually exciting drag and drop WordPress content editor, but the plugin also includes an impressive collection of design elements that you can add to your pages without using short codes, like columns, table of contents builder, testimonials, countdown timers, etc.
- Ideal For Non-Technical Users: Not having to wait for the updated content to load frees up your attention and allows you to be more focused while you work or click through multiple steps to get what you need done.
(Easily insert, edit and customize web page elements like testimonials, tabbed content, text boxes, buttons, credit card icons, etc.)
Thrive Content Builder Features
Thrive Content Builder provides many features to site owners. Here are just a few:
- Built-In WordPress Editor Functionality Is Preserved: You have all of the built-in WordPress editing options that you are used to (e.g. underline, justified paragraphs, heading styles, etc.),
- Drag And Drop Elements Menu: The plugin makes a “drag and drop” list of multi-style elements available on your post or page screen for editing content.
- Conversion-Boosting Elements: The plugin includes a range of eye-catching and customizable elements that will help you increase your sales conversions, including buttons and call-to-action elements, testimonials, and guarantee forms. In addition to being customizable, various elements also offer multiple design options.
- Responsive Design: Add mobile-friendly columns, 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 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 from signup to purchase, product download and more.
(Thrive Landing Pages plugin lets you add conversion-optimized web pages to your site)
Thrive Landing Pages Plugin – Benefits
- Everything is hosted on your own WordPress site
- Save time and money creating and customizing landing pages
- 100% conversion-optimized web pages
- No web coding skills needed
- Works with all WordPress 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 web 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 being worked on. In addition to the existing templates, expect to see new templates in the future for email lead generation, sales pages, course pages, personal branding pages, webinar pages and more.
Customizable Landing Page Template
Normally, in order to have a fully customizable landing page template, you would need to either hire a web site designer 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 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 creating conversion-optimized web pages.”
Thrive Landing Pages gives you great-looking pre-built web page templates that are fully optimized and ready to go, and complete design freedom that lets you change and customize any element of the page template …
With the landing page template sets included with this plugin, you can do the following:
- Edit text in all bullet points, buttons, headlines, etc.
- Delete text, images or any other component of the landing page
- Change the background image or background colour
- Change the color of buttons, links, text, etc.
- Choose your own fonts
- Select your own images and graphics
- Change content area size
- Rearrange the order of elements on your page
- Translate everything on the page into a different language
- Add custom content inside the pages
- Use pre-designed, customized pages, or create your own web pages from scratch and save them as new page templates.
(Change and edit any aspect of your page template)
Thrive Lightbox – Transform Your WordPress Website Into A Marketing Machine
The Thrive plugin package also includes the Thrive Lightbox plugin, which lets you add fully editable two-step opt-in forms and animated objects to your content pages …
(Add opt-in forms and events to your web pages with Thrive Lightbox)
2-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 …
(Opt-in forms can help improve 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 scrolls down to a certain point on the page. You can also use the Event Manager to animate images on your page, using various effects (e.g. fade out, slide in from top to bottom, rotate, etc.
(Set up and manage events on your pages with Thrive Lightbox)
A lightbox and event is created automatically for your landing pages, but you also have complete control over the events, triggers and design.
Feedback From Plugin Users
Here are a couple of the testimonials and comments plugin customers have provided for Thrive Content Builder:
”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”
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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 – Useful 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.
You can add WordPress shortcodes inside the Content Builder or Landing Pages plugin and they will display correctly when published.
Thrive Lightbox works with any content built using Thrive Content Builder.
Product Support
Thrive Landing Pages and Content Builder Plugin provides free updates, new landing pages and upcoming features. The plugin developers are constantly working on adding new features and improving existing ones.
Thrive products are well-supported, and users get lifetime updates, and 1 year unlimited support with their purchase, backed by a no-risk, 30 day, 100% refund guarantee.
This is an exciting product for WordPress users that will just keep getting better.
Software 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 Edition – This edition allows you to use the plugin on a single website. Includes full feature set, unlimited updates and 1 year of unlimited support. Price = $59.00.
- Unlimited Sites License – This edition lets you activate the plugin on all web sites that you personally own. It includes full feature set, unlimited updates and 1 year of unlimited support. Cost = $87.00.
- Agency License – Use on all your websites & on all your client web sites. Includes access to Thrive Content Builder, plus all Thrive Themes & Thrive Plugins. Price = $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. When we last checked, the software is selling for the pricing shown above. This may not be the actual price charged by the product author when you visit the product site and there may be additional upsells or one-time offers after purchasing.
Check the plugin’s website for the current pricing here:
Additional Info
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 the time-saving benefits of ready-made page elements and conversion-optimized template sets that help speed up page design and content creation, and on the other hand, you have complete control over the design process and the freedom to edit and customize anything and everything on your web page, using the plugin’s click-to-edit and drag and drop features, that lets you work unhindered by overly complicated steps.
For a demo video showing plugin usage, including help documentation and tutorials, FAQs, customer helpdesk, contact details and more, visit the Thrive website.
In Conclusion …
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 can see the change happen instantly. If you want to move something, all you need to do is simply drag it and drop it into its new position. There are no complicated steps involved.
If you want to transform and improve your business online and create amazing marketing pages and engaging content, Thrive Landing Pages and Content Builder delivers an incredible conversion-boosting package with a single, inexpensive plugin.
For more details, visit the plugin website here:
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