I'd say it's more a staple for other artists to see the idea and design from all angles of a character, along with color templates and the such! Of course, that also being said, I've just recently had ref sheets done as-is!
Oh I would totally agree with you on that. I've just been too lazy/poor/combination of the two to get one done. I keep saying I'll get one done eventually. Eventually hasn't come by for me yet.
"Why is it blue?"