I think you hit on the exact question there. How can relays themselves be a marketable thing? Be *the* thing? Be the reason people come to try out Nostr. The thing they heard about that makes them think, cool, okay, that's new, I'm going to try this all out. Because if relays can't be that then nostr has no chance.
But if they are to be that then the whole relay narrative needs a major overhaul.