Image is everything?

Here are contrasting posts about whether your company's 'look' is just vanity or all important factor:

1. Beyond Web Usability...Web Credibility, Trenton Moss says"Studies have consistently proven that the most important criteria of web credibility is... the way the website looks. That's it. "

2. How Important is a Logo? from Mike Boyink says "If it's hard to get people to notice or remember a bad logo, how hard is it to get people to notice or remember a good logo?"

3. Judging a book by its cover Seth Godin opins "Sometimes a great cover can help a lousy book (for a little while)...But for books, like most things, the stuff inside matters."

4. 8 Things Stores Don't Want You to Know by John Nardini points to the facts in retail, like: "Research shows that people say pastries taste better in a pink box than any other color."

And the funny thing is, I agree with all of them. So what does this mean? What should I do (or not bother with)?

IMHO, looks (logo, website, book cover, box etc) become just one part of the puzzle to making a complete impression. Just remember that the look (i.e. branding) should get proportional attention to your other prospect-facing items (content, sales-style, product). In other words, just because you have a great product, doesn't mean that you should skimp on the image you portray.

If that wasn't true, you'd never see another salesman come to visit wearing a suit. Image is everything, obey your instincts.