WordPress has evolved from being just a simple blogging tool to a tool that is now being used to design all types of pages – direct sales pages, portfolio pages, business pages, etc.
Whatever you can imagine, someone is most likely already building it with WordPress!
This article will help you discover the fastest WYSIWYG content builder for WordPress.
Drag And Drop Content Editors For WordPress
Is The WordPress Editor Still Meeting All Of Your Page Design Needs?
Using the WordPress editor to build or edit complex page layouts can be difficult for non-technical web site owners.
(The built-in WordPress WYSIWYG editor is great for adding, formatting and editing conventional content, but adding complex layouts can be challenging!)
For example, let’s say you want to create something like the content shown below …
To create the above layout, users would have to insert short codes into the content for each element they would like to add to their page …
Typically, this is not an issue … unless you want to change an element of your layout (for example, move part of the content from box 1 into box 2, or change the background colour in a box from dark green to blue. Then, you’re stuck having to mess around with code inside the editor.
The WordPress editor is supposed to give users an easy-to-use WYSIWYG content editor, but as you can see, when working with more complex content elements, what you see on your editor screen may not be what you get …
(“What You See” isn’t always “What You Get” … unless you can visualize code!)
In some cases, you could be better off working inside the WordPress html editor tab instead of the visual editor when trying to build fancy page elements …
Even though WordPress is extremely easy to use, this makes it difficult for WordPress users with no knowledge of HTML or CSS to fully manage their own content.
The fundamental challenge of having to use HTML and shortcodes to create content in the default WordPress WYSIWYG editor can be summarized by asking the following questions:
1) Speed – How long does it take to create a page using this editor?
2) Abstraction – How closely does the content in the ”back end” match 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 doesn’t look even remotely similar to what you see in the front end. This means that you need to mentally translate what the content will look like when working with sophisticated layouts. Other solutions require multiple steps before you can start configuring your page layout, or endlessly going back and forth between browser tabs and performing tweaks and updates to see how your content is progressing, which interrupts the creative process, as you wait for the content to reload.
Many WordPress developers have tried to come up with different solutions with the goal of addressing this issue. Some of these solutions range from plugins you can install on your site that add new functionality to the editor, to WordPress themes that offer built-in features like drag and drop editing …
(WordPress “drag and drop” editors aim to make content creation easier!)
Some solutions require so many page design features, that users end up with complicated-looking front end content editors …
Many of these solutions work fine, but they still fail to 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 to create or edit complex page layouts quickly, this can become really frustrating.
Ask yourself this …
If there were no technical constraints, how would you like your web content builder to work?
Now that you’ve asked this question, imagine the following …
- You see something in the content that needs fixing so you, just click on the content and start writing. Your content is instantly edited.
- You simply drag and drop elements around the page, and see them exactly as they will appear on the front end without having to mentally abstract from code.
- You have an idea for some content you would like to add, so you just begin typing, and you build your page on the fly, with no delays, with no tab switching, and no waiting for new pages to reload.
Would that not be the ideal way to create content for your WordPress site? A true WYSIWYG content editor where all you have to do is click-to-edit and drag and drop elements around your pages and posts?
(Imagine being able to create complex page layouts quickly 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 – WordPress Click-To-Edit Drag & Drop Content And Page Builder Plugin
Plugin Description
Thrive Content Builder is a truly intuitive WordPress click-to-edit drag-and-drop content building plugin.
Thrive Content Builder is a new and exciting way to speed up the process of adding content to WordPress sites.
Once installed, the plugin adds a visual content editor with a sidebar menu that lets you click, then drag and drop elements to your page …
(Thrive Content Builder adds a new visual content editor to WordPress)
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.
We will cover all of the above plugins and how these exciting features work together to help you transform and improve your site and create awesome marketing pages and engaging content.
Thrive Content Builder – WordPress Click-To-Edit Drag And Drop Content Creation Plugin
This plugin lets you easily add complex design layouts to your web pages using drag and drop elements …
Everything on your page can be built and changed by ”clicking-to-edit” and “dragging and dropping” things around the page …
Once you have positioned your elements on your page, you can then edit these without having to go through additional steps or complicated settings screens …
You can also build stunning landing pages that can also be easily edited …
Thrive Content and Page Builder is simple, easy to use, and ideal for all WordPress users at all levels. In fact, working on content with Thrive Content and Landing Page Builder installed is so amazingly simple, that the developers warn that you will 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 reviewed on this site.
See this post to read about this plugin:
Benefits
Below are just some of the many benefits and advantages of using Thrive Content Builder to speed up content creation:
Installation Is Easy And Fast
Thrive Content Builder is very easy to install. Just upload it to your Plugin folder via your administrator area and activate.
Real-Time Content Building & Editing
Thrive Content Builder is is not only simple to use, it also lets you create and add content to your web pages 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, elements, page layouts, etc. is exactly what you get in the front end of your site.
Additional plugin benefits include the following:
- Eye-Catching Page Layouts With Drag-And-Drop Ease: Create any type of layout you can imagine with intuitive drag-and-drop functionality.
- Add Customizable Elements With No Shortcodes Required: With Thrive Content Builder you not only get an exciting and an easy-to-use click-to-edit content editor, but the plugin also includes an impressive collection of customizable web design elements that you can customizable and use on your web pages without using short codes, for e.g.: tabbed content, table of contents builder, call to action buttons, responsive videos, etc.
- Ideal For Non-Technical Users: Not having to wait for your updated content to refresh frees up your attention and allows you to build the content 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 page elements like testimonials, flat design elements, styled lists, call to action buttons, responsive maps, etc.)
Features
Thrive Content Builder offers WordPress users many great features. Here are just some of those features:
- Regular Content Editor Functionality Is Preserved: You have access to all of the built-in text editing options that you are used to (e.g. underline, paragraph centering, font sizes, etc.),
- Drag And Drop Multi-Style Elements Menu: The plugin makes a “drag and drop” list of elements available on your post or page screen for editing content.
- Conversion-Boosting Elements: The plugin includes 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, testimonial boxes, and guarantees. In addition to customization options, multiple design options are also available for various elements.
- Responsive Element Design: Add mobile-friendly columns, text boxes, content section dividers, e.g. which will display correctly on different screens.
- Add Animation To Pages: The plugin’s Event Manager feature lets you add animated page content, trigger lightboxes and more!
(Add Animated Elements To Your Pages)
Thrive Landing Pages Plugin – 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 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 and money creating and customizing pages
- 100% conversion-optimized landing page templates
- No technical skills needed
- Works with all themes
Thrive Landing Pages and Content Builder not only lets you create beautiful-looking content in your WordPress posts and pages, but you can also choose from dozens of professionally designed, page templates that are conversion-optimized 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 templates that are currently available, expect to see new templates in the future for email lead generation, sales pages, training pages, personal branding pages, webinar pages and more.
Completely Customizable And Flexible Landing Page Template Sets
Normally, in order to fully customize landing page templates, you would need to either pay a web developer to do the work, or learn how to code web pages 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 creating conversion-optimized web pages.”
Thrive Landing Pages gives you great-looking pre-designed web pages that are fully optimized and ready to go, and complete design freedom that allows you to change and customize any aspect of the page templates …
With the landing page templates included with this plugin, you are able to:
- Edit text in all buttons, headlines, bullet points, etc.
- Remove text, images or any other component of the landing page
- Change the background image and edit color
- Edit the color of text, buttons, links, etc.
- Select your own fonts
- Use your own images and graphics
- Modify content area size
- Change the order of elements on your page
- Translate pages into a different language
- Add custom content in your pages
- Start with a blank web page and create your own page templates, or even build your own library of custom landing pages.
(Change or edit any element of your page templates)
Transform Your Site Into A Marketing Machine With Thrive Lightbox Plugin
The Thrive package includes Thrive Lightbox, which lets you add fully customizable two-step opt-in forms and events to your WordPress site …
(Add opt-in forms and animated objects to your web pages with the Thrive Lightbox plugin)
Two-Step Opt-in Forms
A two-step opt-in process can increase your conversion rates. When visitors click on an image or button they are presented with your opt-in form …
(two-step opt-in forms can help increase your conversion rates.)
Thrive Lightbox Event Manager
An “event” consists of a trigger and an action. You can make opt-in forms appear when your visitor clicks or hovers 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 pages, using a range of animation effects (e.g. fade in, slide in from bottom to top, rotate, etc.
(Set up and manage events on your WordPress website 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 Users
Below are a couple of the testimonials that 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”
***
”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”
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 using the plugin.
You can add short codes 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.
Thrive Content Builder Plugin Support
Thrive Content and Page Builder provides 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 well-supported, and users get lifetime upgrades, plus 1 year unlimited support with their purchase, backed by a no-risk, 30 day, 100% money-back guarantee.
This is an exciting product for WordPress users that will just keep getting better.
Software 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 Edition – This allows you to set up the plugin on a single web site. Price includes full feature set, unlimited updates and one year of unlimited support. Cost = $59.00.
- Unlimited Sites License Edition – This enables you to run the plugin on all of your personal sites. Cost includes full feature set, unlimited updates and one year of unlimited support. Cost = $87.00.
- Agency Licensing – This lets you configure the plugin on all of your own sites and all client web sites. Includes access to Thrive Content Builder, plus all Thrive Themes & Thrive Plugins. Price = $247.00 per year.
Note: Pricing for Thrive Content Builder can vary, depending on whether there are any promotions or limited-time specials being offered. Presently, the product retails for the prices shown above. This may not be the actual price charged by the product developer when you visit the product site and there may be additional upsells or one-time offers after your purchase.
Check the plugin’s website for the latest price here:
Additional Information
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 time-saving features like ready-made web page elements and beautiful, pre-designed templates that help make designing your content faster, and on the other hand, you have complete control over the design process and the ability to change everything on your web page, using the plugin’s click-to-edit and drag and drop features, that allows you to see exactly how the content you are working on will display to visitors when published.
For a demo video showing plugin usage, including help documentation and tutorials, FAQs, customer helpdesk, contact details and more, visit the Thrive website.
Download This Plugin …
If you want to edit something, you just click on the element and start editing. If you want to change something, you’ll see the change happen immediately. If you want to move something, just drag it and drop it into its new location. There are no additional steps involved.
If you want to transform and improve your business online 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 more information, visit the plugin website:
***
