"Someone that's independent" — Shark Tank investor Kevin O'Leary shares his take on acquiring customers
Shark Tank star and investor Kevin O'Leary recently shared some advice on how to acquire customers and why family members did not qualify as potential buyers. In a video posted on his official Instagram account (@kevinolearytv) on May 5, 2025, the business owner explained why family members could never qualify as real customers, adding that one needed "independent" individuals.
"Most important thing is to get a customer for your idea that's not your mother, brother, sister, uncle. Someone that's independent. Arms length that sees the merit in your product and is willing to buy it at whatever price you can sell it for," Kevin said.
The Shark Tank expert insisted on keeping family investment and validations away from business ventures, claiming they were not the true testament of the success of one's business. Kevin believed that only when an unknown customer reached out to purchase a product would it be considered a real transaction.
The caption of the Instagram post reads:
"Family love is not product validation. You need real paying customers — people who don't owe you a damn thing. That's when you know your idea works."
"Being a great storyteller" — Shark Tank star Kevin O'Leary suggests using social media to acquire customers
In the video, Kevin consistently reiterated that family support did not equate to success in the market. He explained that entrepreneurs often made the mistake of assuming that their products would generate significant revenue in the market since they were appreciated and used by family members.
The Shark Tank investor disagreed. He said families buy products to be supportive, but that doesn't show if the market truly wants them. Kevin explained that only real sales from unrelated customers can reveal a product’s true potential.
He then went on to explain how entrepreneurs could utilize social media and its ability to reach millions of people at once to advertise their products.
"Today, we're very fortunate because we have social media. So, you can acquire customers by being a great storyteller and being able to produce great content that tells the story of your product or service that people can see, and you can do that for free," Kevin said.
The Shark Tank panelist noted that entrepreneurs were not required to invest large amounts of money in digital spending "right out of the gate" because they could start slowly and "build up a customer base" by creating engaging content.
According to Kevin, those customers, people who reached out to purchase the product, end up becoming "very important" because they believed in the story and vision. He added that the small customer base would eventually help an entrepreneur build their company.
Those customers would repurchase the product or service because they liked it, not because they had personal ties with the owner, like family members did.
"You got to shut up and listen" — Shark Tank panelist Kevin O'Leary on taking business advice from family members
In another Instagram video, posted on April 26, 2025, the Shark Tank investor revealed how his family influenced his business decisions. Kevin admitted listening to their opinions, even though he sometimes disagreed with their suggestions. He confessed that he was interested in their input.
"That's the key. Sometimes to be successful, you got to shut up and listen. You get new ideas that way," he explained.
According to the business owner, by paying attention to what "opinionated" people said, one could gain more information, which would eventually help them become "more powerful."
Shark Tank episodes are available to stream on Hulu.
