I think if you are imaginative then money can work really well – Affactive did a dart thing at our event where what ever you hit in three darts you got on top of your CPA that month. Now of course this only works at an event but maybe take that concept and work it for the masses.
This way you are giving money but also if its original you might get a bit of news from it on a few master affiliate sites…..Just need to remember you need the buy in from the affiliates, and imo don’t do one massive prize as many smaller guys don’t believe they can win it or just suspect it’s fixed. Also do your maths and make sure its a win win for both you and the affiliate and that the promo can’t be abused, I know this is obvious but many people have made this mistake