It's fairly similar to WoW in that being able to field your own group makes farming faster (with certain exceptions) and means you can do higher-level PVE content solo, especially before you "gear up." I never did any of what would be considered "heroic" content in EVE but being able to fly my own fleet + salvager without having to fear accidental aggro or people salvaging my wrecks before I could get to them was very nice.

[edit] And much like some other MMOs, you have damage types that work better (or terrible) against certain factions. Having a full fleet with multiple damage types/mechanics means being much more adaptive to the situation without having to spend a lot of time preparing.