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Associate Professor

Joe Felan

Joe Felan is an Associate Professor of Management at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. He earned his PhD in Production/Operations Management from the University of South Carolina, and holds an MBA and BBA from Baylor University. His research interests have included entrepreneurial activity, economic factors influencing startups, and angel investor behaviors, with publications in notable journals like the Journal of Research in Marketing and Entrepreneurship. In teaching, Joe offers courses such as "New Venture Launch," "Production/Operations Management," and "International Business Management." He has a rich history of contributing to the academic community with insights into business operations and entrepreneurship.

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Contributor Brief·Joe Felan · 1 article
Updated Oct 6, 2023

Remove return friction to build loyalty, not penalty-based retention

Felan argues that retailers fundamentally misunderstand customer retention by imposing return fees and friction, when removing barriers to returns actually drives measurably higher loyalty and lifetime value. He advocates for optimizing reverse logistics as a competitive advantage rather than treating returns as a cost center to penalize.

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“Retailers are discovering that removing friction from returns drives loyalty far better than penalizing customers.”

Easy Returns Help Retain Customers

Return experience design levers and their impact on retention

Removal of return fees9
Frictionless reverse logistics8
Fast refund processing7
Penalty-based return policies2

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35%Removal of
Removal of return fees
Frictionless reverse logistics
Fast refund processing
Penalty-based return policies

reverse logistics

reframed from cost center to loyalty mechanism

Instead of charging return fees, retailers should focus on optimizing reverse logistics.

Easy Returns Help Retain Customers

Easy returns are not a cost; they are a customer retention strategy.

Easy Returns Help Retain Customers

“Penalizing returns punishes the customer and destroys long-term loyalty.”

Themes:Return friction as loyalty destroyerReverse logistics as competitive moatCustomer retention through experience design, not penalties

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