WordPress has evolved from being just a simple blogging tool to a tool that can be used to create all kinds of websites.
Whatever you can imagine, someone is most likely already building it with WordPress!
This article will help you learn how to create stunning content faster and design beautiful layouts with drag & drop ease in WordPress.
Drag And Drop Content Editors For WordPress
The WordPress Editor – Is There A Simpler Option To Create Beautiful-Looking Content Layouts In WordPress?
With so many improvements that WordPress has undergone in recent years, many WordPress developers and users feel that the WordPress editor is lagging behind all other improvements made to the software.
(The default WordPress WYSIWYG editor is great for adding, formatting and editing conventional content, but adding more complex layouts can be quite challenging!)
For example, if you look at the image below …
To create the above layout, users would need to insert short codes into the content for each element they want to display on their web page …
Generally, this is not really an issue … unless you need to edit some part of the layout (for example, move some of the content from box 3 into box 2, or replace the background colour in a box from red to blue. Then, you’re stuck having to mess around with page code.
The WordPress editor is supposed to be an easy-to-use WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) editor, but as you can see, when creating with complex layouts, often what you see in the WordPress content editor screen may not be what you are going to get when the page is 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 directly with the html source itself instead of the WYSIWYG editor when trying to build non-linear page elements …
Even though WordPress is extremely easy to use, this makes it difficult for WordPress site owners with no coding skills to have full control of their own content.
The fundamental problem with having to use HTML and shortcodes to create content with WordPress can be summarized as follows:
1) Speed – How long does it take to build a web 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 screenshot, what you see when working in the content editor looks nothing like what you see in the front end. This means that you have to mentally translate what your content will look like when working with sophisticated layouts. Other solutions require taking multiple 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 interrupts the creative process, as you wait for your content to reload.
A number of WordPress web developers have tried to come up with a range of solutions aiming to make content editing more intuitive. These range from plugins you can install on 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 content creation easier!)
Some solutions require so many complex page design features, that users end up with complicated-looking front end editors …
Many of these solutions work, but they don’t address the fundamental problem with using shortcodes and HTML as described earlier. Creating, 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 to create or edit complex page layouts quickly, this can start to become very frustrating after a while.
Ask yourself this …
If there were no technical constraints, how would you like your content builder to work?
Now that you’ve asked this question, imagine this …
- You spot something in your content that needs correction so you, simply click on the content and start editing it. Your content is then instantly fixed.
- You simply drag and drop items around the page, and the page looks exactly as it will appear on the front end without having to mentally visualize HTML or shortcodes.
- You have an idea for some content that you would like to add, so you immediately start typing, and your page gets built as you go, without delays, no switching of tab browsers, and without waiting for new web pages to resave and reload.
Would that not be the ideal way to create content for your WordPress site? Just click-to-edit and drag and drop elements around the pages and posts?
(Imagine being able to create complex page layouts in real-time 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 – The Simplest Visual Content Builder For WordPress
Plugin Description
Thrive Content Builder is a ground-breaking plugin for WordPress that gives you total control over every aspect of your web page design using a powerful click-to-edit and drag and drop content editor.
Thrive Content Builder is a new and incredibly easy way to set up conversion-focused pages on any WordPress website.
Once installed, Thrive Content Builder adds a visual content editor with a menu that lets you click, then drag and drop design elements on your page …
(Thrive Content Builder adds a new editor to your WordPress site)
The plugin is actually a combination of the Thrive Content Builder and Thrive Landing Pages plugins merged into one, plus an additional plugin feature called Thrive Lightbox.
Let’s examine all of the above plugins and how these features work together to help you easily transform and improve your business online and create amazing sales pages and content.
Thrive Content Builder
With Thrive Content Builder easily add complex design layouts to your web pages using drag and drop elements …
Everything on your page can be designed using ”click-to-edit” and “drag and drop” …
Once you have positioned elements on a page, you can then continue to customize or edit them without having to go through additional steps or complicated option screens …
The built-in functionality of the plugin also lets you work inside stunning landing pages that can also be easily edited …
Thrive Content Builder and Landing Pages is simple, easy to use, and ideal for all WordPress users at all levels. In fact, designing web pages with Thrive Landing Pages and Content Builder installed is so amazingly simple, that the developers warn that once you start using it, you’ll never look back!
To learn more about the plugin go here: Thrive Content Builder
The integrated Thrive Landing Pages and Content Builder plugin was created by the same team that developed Thrive Leads, another terrific plugin for WordPress we’ve previously recommended on this site.
For more information about using this plugin, go here:
Plugin Benefits
Below we have listed just a few of the benefits of using Thrive Content Builder to speed up content creation:
Be Up And Running In No Time
Thrive Content Builder is very easy to install. Simply upload it to your Plugins folder via your WP dashboard and activate.
Edit And Build Content In Real Time
Thrive Content Builder is really simple and intuitive to use and lets you build content in real-time.
A Truly Visual Content Editor
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.
Additional benefits and advantages include:
- Add Stunning Page Layouts With Drag-And-Drop Ease: Create any type of layout you can imagine with intuitive drag and drop functionality.
- Customizable Elements Included: With the Thrive Content Builder plugin you not only get a visually exciting click-to-edit content editor, but the plugin also includes a very decent collection of professional design elements that you can customizable and insert into your layouts without using shortcodes, such as tabbed content, feature grids, buttons, responsive maps, etc.
- Distraction-Free Content Creation: Not having to wait for your content to refresh 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 layers of menus to get what you want done.
(Insert, edit and customize web page elements like testimonials, pricing tables, table of contents builder, buttons, Google Map embeds, etc.)
Plugin Features
Thrive Content Builder offers many features to WP users. Here are just a few:
- Regular Content Editor Functionality Is Preserved: You have all of the built-in WordPress text editing options that you are used to (e.g. underline, paragraph centering, font styles, etc.),
- Drag And Drop Multi-Style Elements Menu: The plugin adds a “drag and drop” list of elements to your post or page screen when creating or editing content.
- Conversion-Boosting Elements: The plugin provides you with a range of attention-grabbing and customizable elements that will help increase the effectiveness of your sales pages, including buttons and call-to-action elements, testimonials, and guarantee forms. In addition to customization options, various elements also offer multiple design options.
- Responsive Design: Add mobile-friendly elements like column layouts, text boxes, section dividers, e.g. which will display correctly on devices with differently sized screens.
- Add Animation To Your Pages: The plugin’s Event Manager feature lets you insert animated page content, trigger lightboxes and more!
(Add Animated Elements To Your Web Pages)
Thrive Landing Pages Plugin – Landing Page Template Sets
Landing page template sets are 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 lets you easily add conversion-optimized web pages to your web site)
Thrive Landing Pages – Benefits
- Hosted on your own WordPress site
- Save time designing landing pages
- 100% conversion-optimized landing pages
- No coding skills required
- Works with all themes
Thrive Content 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 landing 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 30+ templates available, with more templates planned for future release. In addition to the available templates, expect to see new templates in the future for email lead generation, sales pages, course pages, personal branding pages, webinar pages and more.
Fully 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 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 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-built web page templates that are fully optimized and ready to go, and complete design freedom that allows you to change or customize anything on your page templates …
With the landing page templates included with this plugin, you are able to:
- Modify text in any headline, bullet point, button, etc.
- Delete text, images or any other component of the landing page
- Replace all background images or color
- Edit the color of text, buttons, links, etc.
- Use your own fonts
- Select your own images
- Modify content area size
- Change the order of web page elements
- Translate everything on the page into different languages
- Add any kind of custom content inside the pages
- Start with a blank page and create your own templates, or even build your own custom landing page templates library.
(Change and edit anything on your page)
Thrive Lightbox Plugin – Transform Your WordPress Site Into A Marketing Machine
The Thrive plugin combo also includes Thrive Lightbox, which lets you add fully customizable two-step opt-in forms and animated objects to your WordPress site …
(Add lead capture forms and events to your web pages with Thrive Lightbox)
2-Step Opt-in Forms
A two-step opt-in process helps increase your conversion rates. Visitors click on a button or image, 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 an opt-in form appear when your visitor clicks or hovers their mouse 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 pages, using a range of effects (e.g. zoom out, slide in from bottom to top, roll in, etc.
(Set up and manage events on your WordPress web site 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 Testimonials
Below are just some testimonials and feedback that plugin customers have provided for 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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”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”
Thrive Content Builder Plugin – Useful Tips
Thrive Content Builder works with any WordPress theme, not just with Thrive Landing Pages. Note, however, that you cannot use Thrive Content Builder to edit content on pages or posts that were not created using the plugin.
You can add shortcodes inside Thrive Content Builder or Thrive Landing Pages and they will display correctly on your website.
Thrive Lightbox works with any content you build using Thrive Content Builder.
Thrive Content Builder Support
Thrive Content and Landing Page Builder 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 software is very well-supported, and users get lifetime software upgrades, and one year unlimited support with their purchase, backed by a no-risk, 30 day, complete refund guarantee.
This is an exciting product that just keeps getting better.
Plugin 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 License Edition – This lets you activate the plugin on 1 web site only. Cost includes full feature set, unlimited updates and 1 year of unlimited support. Cost = $59.00.
- Unlimited Sites Licensing – This allows you to set up 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 license enables you to set up the plugin on all of your own domains and your client web sites. Includes access to Thrive Content Builder, plus all Thrive Themes & Thrive Plugins. Cost = $247.00 per year.
Note: Pricing details of Thrive Content Builder depends on whether there are any promotions or limited-time special offers. Presently, the software is being retailed for the prices shown above. This may or may not be the actual price charged by the plugin seller when you visit the website and there may be additional upsells or one-time offers after you’ve purchased.
Check the plugin’s website for the latest price:
Additional Info
The Thrive 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 speed up content design, and on the other hand, you also have complete control over your design process and the freedom to edit everything on your page, using the plugin’s click-to-edit and drag and drop features, which allows you to get things done without having to open multiple dialog boxes.
For ”how to” videos showing how the software works, including installation instructions and tutorials, FAQs, support helpdesk, contact details and more, visit the Thrive website.
Install The Plugin …
If you want to edit something, you just click on the element and start editing. If you want to change something, you will see the change happen immediately. If you want to move something, all you have to do is simply drag it and drop it into its new location. There are no unnecessary steps involved.
If you want to transform and improve your web presence and create awesome marketing pages and content, Thrive Content and Landing Page Builder delivers an incredible conversion-boosting package with a single, inexpensive plugin.
For complete details, visit the plugin website here:
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