I went to a Marc Rebillet concert last night (if you don’t know who that is, look him up—he’s awesome). The venue was full and the energy was electric.
The opening act was playing, and towards the end of their set, one of the DJs came back onto the stage holding two things in each arm. The crowd was screaming. He was motioning as if he was going to throw these items into the crowd.
I got curious and moved closer to see what everyone was going crazy about.
That’s when I saw that he was holding bunches of celery.
Yes. Bunches of celery. Like the ones you buy at the grocery store for three bucks.
He started grabbing stalks of celery off the bunch—one at a time—and throwing them into the crowd. Everyone was throwing their hands in the air, pushing and shoving to catch them. He continued with the next stalk, and people at this point knew full well that it was just celery. They were still jumping and screaming, clamoring to catch the next one.
I was standing there in amazement watching this all happen, thinking: Why is everyone going crazy over celery?
I mean, I like celery. It has its place. Don’t get me wrong. But it’s not something I’d go crazy over.
Then the third stalk zooms right past me and falls onto the ground next to the group beside us. They all had their hands up. One of the guys picks it up off the ground with a huge smile on his face, and the group around him cheers.
I’m thinking: He’s not going to eat that. It’s disgusting. It just fell on the ground. And even if he did eat it, it’s not going to taste any better being manhandled from some guy off the stage.
As the rest of the celery gets thrown into the crowd one by one, I’m trying to understand what’s happening.
That’s when it hit me: This is a perfect example of context and desirability.
The Celery Paradox
Every grocery store in that area is stocked to the brim with celery bunches. These same people pushing others out of the way for a chance to grab a manhandled stalk of celery wouldn’t think twice about walking past a grocery store aisle full of it.
This reminded me of an experiment I recently read about from 2007 or 2008. The Washington Post took world-class violinist Joshua Bell and his $14 million violin (yes, I had to look it up because I couldn’t believe it) and had him play in the DC Metro subway station for 45 minutes.
People hardly noticed him.
At the end, he made $32.17.
Now, that’s a decent haul... but for context, he normally makes $150,000 per concert.
Let’s do a little math. If he plays for two hours with a 20-minute intermission (which is typical), that’s about two 45-minute sets. If we divide his normal fee in half, that means he makes about $75,000 per 45 minutes.
But in the subway, playing the exact same music with the exact same talent and instrument, he made $32.17.
Compared to his normal fee, that’s 2,331 times less than what he normally makes for the same amount of time.
So was it just a really bad day and he only played $32 worth of a show? Were the subway goers too discerning and didn’t find value in his level of talent? Or was it because they didn’t know he was world famous?
Does knowing he’s world famous with a $14 million violin change the value of his performance?
I don’t know all the answers, but I think this points to how important context is in business and in life.
The $12,000 Sweater Question
There’s the inherent value of, let’s say, a sweater in its tangible materials—the time it took someone to create it, the warmth it gives you on a cold day. But then why are some sweaters $10 and others $12,000 (like a Loro Piana)?
Are the materials for the $12,000 sweater 1,200 times more valuable? I mean, you could argue they’re more valuable, but are they 1,200 times more valuable?
Or is there something else in the context and the meaning that people put on that $12,000 sweater that makes it worth the price?
What This Means for New Entrepreneurs
This is what I’ve been mulling over in my head as a new entrepreneur.
Of course, you have to have a good product. That’s a given. But then what? Do you keep focusing on making the product better and better, iterating endlessly? Or should your focus be on finding your audience—your context?
Because your product can be amazing, like Joshua Bell playing the violin. But if no one knows about it, knows why your product is amazing and why they should think so too... then your product is destined to meet the exact same fate that Joshua did with that $32.17.
This is something that, in my experience, most entrepreneurs avoid or dread. They think, “Oh, maybe I just need to update this feature. I need to tweak this button. You know what, let’s revamp the filing system or get newer software.”
They focus most of their time on everything except the things that will move the needle.
The ratio needs to be flipped. Especially at the beginning when you’re starting (though I’d argue it’s important throughout). You have to find and nurture your audience—your context.
So how do you do this?
Here are my seven tips as I’m learning this and building in public. I’m sure there’ll be more tips I find along the way, and I’ll make sure to share those with you as well.
Tip 1: Find the Rooms Where You’re Valued
Most people are trying to convince the wrong crowd. They’ve focused so much on the product that they’ve forgotten who they created it for. So they try to sell it to everyone.
That is the biggest mistake you can make in business and marketing.
Here’s a quick example: Let’s say I make meal plans that come with grocery lists and I try to market them to everyone. The stay-at-home mom on a budget with three kids, the busy executive with more money than time, and the vegetarian yoga teacher who loves to cook.
How in the world will that same exact grocery list and generic meal plan satisfy each of them? If I’m lucky, one of them is going to be happy with my generic plan, but that’s unlikely.
While I’ve spent hours creating an amazing plan, I’ve neglected the most important thing: the customer. Not only am I now in the wrong room—I don’t even know which room I’m in.
So the first thing you need to do is find it.
Look at your followers, your audience, and write down what they have in common. What are they talking about? What keeps them up at night? What do they actually want?
Then look for where they’re hanging out and observe to gather more information. Don’t go in there spamming and trying to sell. Put on the hat of a scientist and observe your subject.
You’re observing your ideal customer so you can learn the exact words they use to describe their problem—because those will be the words your brand needs to speak.
Your job is to learn as much as you can, inside and out, until you can describe their problem better than they can. Once you can do that, you’ll have started to find your people.
Tip 2: Lead With Meaning, Not Mechanics
Joshua Bell did not need a better violin. He already had a $14 million one. I’m sure there’s a better one that exists, but that’s gotta be top tier.
He needed people who understood what they were hearing.
That’s the same with your business. You can’t just sell features. You have to sell the meaning behind them.
Instead of saying “This planner has 52 weekly spreads and habit trackers,” say “This planner helps you reclaim your mornings so you’re not scrambling by 9am.”
Instead of saying “We use organic cotton,” say “You’ll feel the difference the moment you put this on—soft, breathable, made to last.”
People don’t buy what your product is. They buy what it does for them.
So ask yourself: What transformation does your product create? What does life look like after someone uses it? That’s your real value. That’s what you lead with.
Tip 3: Create Moments, Not Just Transactions
Think about the celery. It wasn’t special. But the moment was.
Your brand doesn’t need to be flashy or over-the-top, but it does need to create little moments that people remember. Doing the unscalable, creating those tiny moments of delight that help people feel something.
This could be:
Taking a couple minutes to send a personalized thank you note to a customer
Having a little Easter egg in your email or packaging
Doing a mini ritual like a launch day live stream where your audience gets to be part of the experience
At the end of the day, people want to feel delighted. If you can do little things around your brand that delight them and create emotional moments, that’s how they’re going to feel about your brand.
That’s what turns it from ordinary to something people remember.
Tip 4: Borrow Other Stages
If the concert hall is already built and full, just borrow the microphone.
You don’t need to build your entire audience from scratch. Look for other creators, podcasters, or business owners who already have your dream audience, and then offer to bring them value.
Here’s how:
Look in your network and make a list of five people or brands who are speaking to the same audience as you. Reach out to them. Ask to do a joint live, give them a blog post they can post on their website, or be a guest on their podcast. The sky’s the limit.
If that feels like too much, even just 10 minutes a day of commenting meaningfully (not spam, but commenting with the heart of a teacher) on their posts can make a huge difference.
You’ll be amazed how fast you can build a network and your brand’s visibility when you step into the rooms where your audience is already paying attention.
Tip 5: Build Context Through Consistency
Context isn’t a Ronco rotisserie cooker. You can’t set it one time and forget it. It’s built through consistently showing up.
Every post, every email, every launch is a building block in how people perceive you.
Here are a few questions to see if your branding is showing up like it should:
Is your message and voice the same everywhere? Or are you showing up as a different person on every platform?
Are you showing up consistently for at least 90 days in one content format (video, newsletter, or podcast)?
Do you end every piece of content with the same call to action?
Daniel Priestley in his book Oversubscribed says that it takes seven hours of content for someone to trust a brand enough to buy from it.
Consistency creates trust.
(P.S. — I have a free branding and Canva guide that I can link in the show notes if you want it.)
Tip 6: Build Proof, Not Just Hype
Life would be so much easier if everyone told the truth and all promises were to be believed. But we live in the real world. In the real world, people lie. People in business have lied or made claims that were way too good to be true.
So consumers have become much smarter and more skeptical.
It’s not enough to say you can help them with their problem. You have to show them you can.
Here are a couple ways:
Collect little testimonials. Ask happy customers for one-sentence wins. Something as simple as, “I used it for 10 minutes and finally finished my [blank].”
Document the process. Share how you’re doing things. Teach them, give them value. Let people watch you do it. It helps build your credibility and a relationship without being salesy.
Create a results highlight on your site or profile. Dedicate a section to showing transformations after people have used your product or service. Show photos, stats, quotes, or short clips—anything to show people the vision, the outcome, the benefit.
The proof is what helps create the context. When people see results, the value becomes much more obvious. You no longer have to convince them. They’ll convince themselves.
Tip 7: Curate the Environment Around Your Product
Even the most gorgeous, beautiful art will look cheap under crappy fluorescent lighting.
Your product’s environment—how it’s presented, packaged, and experienced—teaches people what to believe about it before they even try it.
A lot of people forget this. You’re not just designing a product. You’re designing the environment, the stage it stands on, the feeling it gives people.
Here’s how to evaluate your environment:
Look at your digital presence. Google your site. Google yourself. Click on your own links. Scroll through your Instagram, your social media. Ask yourself: If this were someone else’s brand, what would I assume about their quality? Does your online presence feel like how you want your product to be perceived?
Simplify and elevate your branding. Confusion kills value. Limit your palette, fonts, and tone so every detail is saying the same message. Luxury doesn’t come from adding more—it comes from stripping everything away except the essentials. Think Apple. Think the Google search bar. (My 90s kids remember Ask Jeeves or the Yahoo front page.) Google stripped everything away to the essentials and became number one.
Frame your value visually. Use photography, mock-ups, demos—anything you can to show your product in its best context. For example, if you sell a $200 planner, you wouldn’t show it on a messy desk. You’d show it on a beautiful desk with sunlight pouring in and maybe a cup of coffee. People buy the story, the environment, the feeling for themselves.
Set a tone for your brand experience. Think about the way you write your emails, how you deliver downloads, how you onboard new customers. Make sure it all feels cohesive. It doesn’t mean it has to be elegant—if your brand is “craft brewing for bros,” that voice is going to sound way different than “K-beauty skincare for Gen Alpha tweens.” The most important thing is that your voice is clear, consistent, and easy for your audience to understand.
The ultimate goal? Translating your brand’s value into a language that your audience understands instantly—at an emotional level, at a feeling level.
The Stage You’re Building
So those are seven ways I’ve found to build context and avoid playing your $14 million violin (I still can’t believe it’s that expensive) for the wrong audience.
The next time you find yourself wondering, “Is my product good enough?” maybe it’s better to ask: “Am I building the right stage for it?”
Joshua Bell did not become a better violinist when he stepped onto the concert stage. It was only the environment that allowed people to see what was already true about him.
Maybe that’s the same for you. Maybe your product, your idea, your skills, your art is already incredible. It’s just waiting for you to put it in the right light, in front of the right people, with the right story.
Because when you do that, even celery becomes priceless.
Want to make your website look amazing without the tech overwhelm? Check out my Show it and Canva templates at marymilagros.com — or grab my free Sales Page Starter Kit (with GPT for copy!) at marymilagros.com/free.
