Companies are always trying to come up with a formula to produce successful web application. A lot has been said  about the reasons of success of the web application but there is no barometer that can give you exact formula. Some of the common reasons are listed below:

• Features and Purpose
• User Experience
• Design and Branding

Most of the time it is the right combination of the above three that will give you the best result.

To understand which is more important among them. Let us do an exercise by choosing 5 different web application from internet and 10 random people.

Give 10 minutes to all of them to play with 5 websites (2 minutes for each website).

Now ask them following question:

• What is the first thing you remember about any random website ?
  90% of the people will remember the color or pictures or logo of the website.
• What is second thing you remember about any random website ?
  Majority of people would be saying transition or big buttons.
• What was website all about?
  Out of 10 people only 2 will be able to describe not more than 2 websites.
• Which one was the best website ?
  Most of them will tell you the website by their base color (say black background one).

 

Form all the above answers one can determine how important branding and design of the website is ? Your website need not to be an award winning design website but you cannot simply ignore it.