I started building Juta because of a specific problem I kept calling the relay problem. One sibling calls our mom. That sibling then calls the other siblings. One of those calls gets dropped. Two of them get a version of the conversation that is slightly different from the original. Everyone is exhausted. Nobody is sure exactly how mom is doing today.
I thought that was the whole problem. It turns out it was only part of it.
What we got right
The relay problem is real and Juta solves it. The evening recap goes to every family member simultaneously. Nobody has to call anyone. Nobody has to wonder whether the update they heard was accurate. That part of the product works exactly as intended, and families tell us about it almost immediately after they enroll.
The quiz was the right call. Families who completed the quiz before enrolling stayed longer and asked fewer confused questions. Setting expectations before signup matters more than I initially realized.
What we got wrong
I assumed families would want a lot of customization. More control over the message timing, the topics, the tone. In reality, most families wanted to set it up once and trust the product to handle the rest. Simplicity was more valuable than flexibility. We are building the product around that insight.
I also underestimated how much the recipient's experience matters. Juta is sold to families, but the person receiving the texts is the resident. When we got feedback about Juta not working, it was almost always because the texts were not landing as warm and personal enough for that specific person. We are getting better at intake, but this is still where we have the most room to grow.
What still surprises me
How much people care. I have received messages from adult children at 11pm telling me they had their first real conversation with their parent in months because of a question Juta asked. That does not get old. It is why we are still building this.
We are 90 days in. The product works. The mission is real. We are just getting started.