Case study of Mute it App muteit.app

A year ago I found an idea of Mute it the app useful for people who afraid to visit toilet when people around. Last year in October I designed case study and posted it just in my Figma pages. It was available only for those who visit my website olianayda.com or for those who interested to have me in team.

It was a mistake to delay publishing on Medium. Here is full case study for first version I designed, with problems and decisions, hypothesis and validation.

Important: if you want to help with developing, investing or give an interview about problem I described, please feel free to write me olianayda@gmail.com

Mute it App

User goal: keep sound privacy in toilet
A problem: some people are embarrassed of their sounds in toilet.

Sometimes you don’t need water you need the sound of water

1/4 Story. Hypothesis. Shortly

I’ve note a problem: people shy of their sounds. They use water sound in toilet “courtesy flush” to cover other sounds, voices. Or to calm themselves about nobody can hear them. This problem is actual in movies, sitcoms and I noticed it with my friends. I have it too.

Cheep flats has very low soundproofing in bathroom. So I always can hear what my friends do there when I visiting them. And this sounds make me feel uncomfortable espesially when I know that they can hear me too.

Hypothesis: Can I help people feel more comfortable about privacy in toilet and produce water saving?

This made me start research

2/4 Reserch. Problem definition

Observations

When I lived in student dormitory the toilet room was only one for 50 students. There was 6 cabins separated by plastic thin walls 40 centimetres above floor and you always knew is it your roommate pooping or a girl who plays hip-hop loudly every night.

How did it used before start
Given: Unisolated public toilet
When: User comes in
Then: User locks the cabin
And: User pushing flush button

How did it used during the process
Given: Unisolated public toilet
When: Flush sound stops
Then: User feels difference to push flush button again
And: User finishing without sound masking

Student dormitory toilet. KubSU University

Time goes and it looks okay, you’re not pay attention on this process anymore.

Now I live in flat and toilet sounds are still not isolated enough. Every time I have friends or relatives at home I use water tap, to mask my sounds. I noticed that my friends sometimes acts the same.

What I found

Here is a lot of devices made especially with one goal:
to cover up sounds in bathroom.

Japanese “Sound Princess” imitates flush sound. Source: https://blog.gaijinpot.com/japanese-sound-princess/

Toilet Buddy helps cover up bathroom noises
https://blog.gaijinpot.com/japanese-sound-princess/

Comments also full of discussions about that. And It’s made me think from other angle.

Comments about “Sound Princess” Source: https://blog.gaijinpot.com/japanese-sound-princess/

I’ve learned that some people do not care about bathroom sounds and some are care too much. Some do not really know that it’s okay to make that sounds. And it’s a good idea to make some tips learning how not to care about it and how to do it in a right way.

A problem: some people are embarrassed of their sounds in toilet. Problem and hypothetical solutions. In the centre “problem solving” around are ways of solving for single person. Left hand “to except public toilets”, right hand “social education about it’s okay”, above “covers embracing sound”, below “toilet with better sound isolation”

Japanese already solved that by “Sound Princess”.

Research Outcomes. How problem can be solved?

• Education. It’s okay to hear other people in toilet and out of toilet It’s okay if somebody can hear you too. Expansive and almost impossible for me as single designer.
• Better soundproofing. No sound, no problem.
  It’s even more impossible than education for single designer. And very expansive.
• Avoidance. Recommend not to use open public toilets without privacy care.
  You will never know what kind of toilet is in restaurant you feel no good
• Sound coverage. Cover any sound you do not like by neutral sound.
  It is easy reachable neutral sound from smartphone.

For whom

• People who cares about reputation, and what other people think.
• People who wants to cover up others
• People who need to relax.

Hypothesis is actually needed to be checked in practice.

3/4 Process

Process has started from low fidelity prototypes scenarios and discussion with team.

My thoughts about improving and further development. It requires research in future, but the basic
functional can be started to develop

How can I do that better?
I can make it reachable for everyone and everywhere right in smartphone or online.

It’s can be native app for iOS and Android, also web-site.

You can choose different sound types: water tap or flush for masking your own sounds or waterfall noise to make weather more comfortable for ears.

How can I make users stay longer with my app?
What value it also can bring for them?
I spoke with my friends and noticed one thing. Mostly all of them use the wrong posture when they poop. Increased my research and found some tools to fix that on kickstarter like Turbo fusion.
That’s make me think I can improve basic version of my app.

How my App should looks like?
1. MVP: On/Of water sound
2. Built 2.0: Tips for better health
3. Built 3.0: Log for excretion quality control. Many diseases can be predicted by excretion monitoring. Hypothesis needs research.

MVP design sketch and wireframe

App structure in perspective. Transcription. Screens: welcome view, play-stop, log (calendar of secretions: when, what, what kind, symptoms, what it means)-tips(how to poop, when to poop). Note: can fitness band get know did the user pooped or peed?

Slightly from low fidelity prototypes to hight.
I have no friends to help me with Swift fo iOS, so I built the app using Xcode and online lesson in two days.

Still I can’t post it on the App Store because of acquiring problems between Apple and my bank.

Test flight Xcode iPhone 11 (left) Test flight Android Studio Google Pixel 2 (right)

I decided to use another platform: Google Play. While the problem with Apple Developer account is not resolved. I have no friends who can help me with Kotlin too, and I’m not found any lesson I need so I found developer on Fiver.

The app made by developer from Fiver had a huge bag ruining UX: between sound loops was 1 second gap. And the gap appeared at very uncomfortable moment haha.

I had two month of messaging with Apple Developers Support and finally payed my developers account. To deliver app in stores I started to find teammates. Now we’re have 6 awesome product creators in the team and built a website. But we’re still need recourses to start our app and deliver it worldwide. One of last updates: muteit.app started at Cloud Flare servers and available at 200 000 cities with minimal ping.

4/4 Outcomes

As a result I have a research base. Ideas for new hypothesis check. An MVPs ready for user tests to confirm or decline basic hypothesis: Can I really help people feel more comfortable about privacy in toilet and produce water saving by water sound imitating app?

In progress: referral system, new website, brand, multiplatform app, localisation, design of built 2.0. research for built 3.0. If you know where you can help we’re are open for opportunities: olianayda@gmail.com

If you want to help or support our team

Fill free to compose me an email here olianayda@gmail.com. Or you may text our CTO Aleksei Dolgikh (alexdollbun@gmail.com) or learn about community we’re support: Unicorn Witnesses