Referral programs are common at the consumer level. For example, various companies offer a free month of internet or mobile phone service, or additional cloud storage space at no extra charge when customers successfully refer a friend to the service.

But it is less common with business services.

The NetSuite SuiteReferral program rewards referrers with a fee equivalent to 10% of the new customer's first year licence.

There are also non-financial benefits.

Participants with five or fewer referrals a year receive vouchers for NetSuite certifications, as well as access to co-branded marketing materials, events, and webinars (suggesting a focus on consultants and other professionals such as accountants).

Those with five to nine referrals a year also gain access to NetSuite executives and early access to information on new service features and product releases, plus discounts to NetSuite customer products and custom NetSuite swag.

More than ten referrals a year adds VIP access at the annual SuiteWorld user conference, and access to the SuiteGurus group NetSuite support subject matter experts.

"We are lucky to have a highly engaged community of customers, partners and independent consultants that know our product inside and out," said NetSuite ANZ vice president and general manager Jason Toshack.

"We are excited to launch SuiteReferral as we believe it creates a win-win for all parties, including referrers, customers, and the greater NetSuite community."