Google’s paying $15 a head for new Apps for Business users

Google Apps for Business has proven pretty useful in the enterprise, but to sweeten the user-acquisition deal, Google just launched a referral program.

According to the company blog post, users will received $15 for every individual they get to sign up.

This sounds great. So what’s the catch?

It’s not too bad at all: You get credit for referred customers as long as they pay for at least 120 days of use. Additionally, there is no limit to the number of referrals, and you amass credit for every new customer’s first one 100 users (a user is an individual account under the customer’s domain).

Google is also throwing in some coupons for you and your referred customers.

While Google has apparently launched this program because many of its customers joined after learning about Google apps from their own business partners; it’s interesting that it has not thought of this earlier. Referral programs are everywhere, and Google doesn’t really have a brand awareness problem.

But then again, although Google Apps are a no-brainer here in Silicon Valley, they might not be in in many other areas in the U.S.