Hmm, lemme try again: you don't have to convince EVERYONE that literature has value to them, so those people who may have arguments against the utility of your work don't matter as long as you can convince "enough" people of its utility. You can't please everyone:
Someone Out There Disapproves of Everything You Do | Mind-Manual
Or, let's try another way: what's your conception of value? Is it just concrete stuff? What about the other stuff that people value and spend time and money on that is not very concrete? Like art, or philosophy or what have you? That should indicate that your conception of how value is created may need to be updated.
That said, if you feel you should be doing something more "concrete" that's a different issue.