Beyond salary/bonus/equity, think about "rewarding" employees for truly superior performance, how about dinner on the company as a spot award? or recognizing employee's start-date anniversaries? or closing the office early before a holiday to allow the team to get a jump on the holiday? or awarding a personal day after completion of a 'hairy-scary' assignment?. At the end of the day words are just words. While feedback is important, people also need to feel appreciated in a tangible way. The return in terms of employee loyalty and commitment will far outweigh the financial cost of these "spot" awards over the long run.