While a nice looking site is important, it should be designed with loading times in mind, and since the majority of the world is still on dialup connections, that should be taken into consideration. The way your site looks is important, but the way it functions is equally important (if not more).

Many dialup users skip right by sites that are too heavy with eye candy, because they are not willing to sit there waiting for the page to load. Each one of those users is a lost potential customer.