[Tony G]

Some people very much underestimate the power of what a good looking style does for your forum. Good looking doesn't mean lots of images and that, it means something unique and in essense, different from the vBulletin default style. And some people think a simple colour change is enough, but with so many vB's around nowadays, it isn't.

Content is very important but if your style is boring, dull, unappealing, nobody will join up.

Forums which are popular with, for example the default vB style, have head starts. They may already have developed a community elsehwere, friends asked to join, etc. Too many people think the same will happen to them but they forget, they don't have that established community, they have nothing. And that's where the style comes in.

So yeah, in conclusion, you definitely need both. Having one or the other doesn't work anymore.