GURPS/4E... could be more attractive?

[PK]

I just got back from my store liaison visit, in which I had a really interesting conversation with the guys there, that I felt was worth sharing.

We were discussion how the SJG card games (Munchkin, Ninja Burger, etc.) sold really well there, but GURPS didn't. In fact, the manager went over his list of the RPG books that sold in the double-digits last year, and GURPS wasn't on there. Predictably, they were almost all D&D books, with a handful of Shadowrun and (oddly) the new Mage game.

So we started talking about why they thought that was, and both of them were quite sure that one of the reasons is that the GURPS books, "though they've improved, just can't compete visually with most of the D&D books. They're not as attractive, and when I see people making the decision to buy, a major factor is how the book looks."

He handed me the new Book of Thrones d20 game (from GoO) and had me flip through it. I was impressed. Every single page made use of full color backgrounds and patterns, but not in a way that obscured the text. There were plenty of boxes and such to break up the text flow, and every few dozen pages, there'd be a full, two-page spread of artwork (some of it very nice, some average, but none was poorly done). I handed it back, and he continued, "People are picking up this book, flipping through it, and buying it on the style points alone. The fact that they already know d20 helps, of course, but the GURPS books just don't grab anyone. The new books look better than the old edition, sure, but they're still boring and the little bit of art that there is isn't that great."

Considering the number of people that rallied against the changes SJG made for 4E, I thought this was a really interesting point of view. This guy sees what people are buying and has a chance to find out why they're buying it, and if he's right, it seems like SJG might not have gone far enough in trying to improve the look of their products. Even now, flipping through Powers, while there are several decent pieces of art, a lot of it is just straight Poser and some is just horrible (like the fire-breathing Jesus on p. 26).

Is this having an effect on sales? According to one FLGS, the answer is a definite yes. Old-school GURPS fans might not mind a book with no (or bad) art as long as it's crammed with useful text, but any product lives on new blood -- the maxim of the business world is "grow or die". Does GURPS need to get more attractive?

EDIT: Please note that this thread is not intended to complain about quality (artwork or otherwise) of the GURPS books, but instead to discuss whether or not he was right about the direction that GURPS needs to head in. Is presentation as important (or even more important) in a gaming book as content?