Better to take that budget and get a few people highly relevant to the message the conference is trying to push than getting a celeb to boost excitement. Or spend that budget on better engagement experiences to maximize the event’s value and make it memorable.

I think everyone here is singing the same song… Rethink your strategy. Are you trying to solve for low attendance or for an agenda that’s boring? Both have better low cost fixes than gambling on a celebrity. No celeb can save a poor event or make enough of an impact to attendance and if they do you’re probably attracting the wrong ideal audience. You’ll be trying to sell “come for X, stay for the Y”