Even women, who are supposed to be less shallow and materialistic (*cough*), will say that a guy should be good-looking when he approaches a woman-otherwise, how will he be able to pull off whatever he has in mind? Good looks will get you noticed more than ugly features will. Why read books when you can get the info for free on the web anyway?
That's right, I've heard about the 'three S's.' Not that I've read the books, however. The truth is that good looks are a nice bonus to have to match the self-confidence, self-control, and sense of humour that works on women.
Of course, nowadays, with all these con artists-erm, I mean pickup artists or 'PUAs'-around trying to flog their books and so on about how to seduce women and get laid and so on, even an average looking Joe stands a chance-or so they say.