Which is better for motivating referrals: cash, gift cards, or actual merchandise?
Personally, they are all motivating but I think that it is cash. Cash is the best as it is money and the user can use it for whatever they want. Cash also indicates the worth they have earned. With gift cards, you may not have any gift cards that may appeal to a user. For example: let’s say you have Starbucks, Food Restaurant and Amazon. It may not appeal to those who do not like shopping on the internet for products, hate Starbucks or eating out in restaurants. (Unlikely but possible). Same applies to actual merchandise – you may have goods which may not be interesting to a person. You may not sell a wide range of items that may interest a person and may lose interest. A good example of merchandise selling is SwagBucks (http://www.swagbucks.com/?cmd=sb-home).
