Soap Emoji Proposal To: U nicode Consortium From: Rob Schwartz
[email protected] March 3, 2017
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Abstract. This document requests the addition of an emoji representing soap. Soap is incredibly popular in the real world, and its potential usage online is comparable to or greater than current emoji in the hotel and food groupings. The soap emoji has many potential literal and metaphorical uses that also cannot be represented with current emoji. Soap’s prominence, online usage, and importance in the modern world make it a uniquely strong addition to Unicode’s current set of emoji.
Introduction. Soap is one of the most common products in the world, due to its unique ability to remove disease- and infection-causing germs from hands or other items while washing.1 Two of the three principal killers of children worldwide (pneumonia and diarrhea) can be effectively combatted simply by providing access to soap.2 Furthermore, increasing global access to soap can prevent 1.4 million deaths per year.3 Using soap when handwashing is also one of the most cost-effective ways to improve childhood health, nutrition, economic output, and school attendance.4 Soap was invented around 2800 BC and was first used to prevent sores and skin inflammation. It has been used for a variety of purposes since then, including shampooing, bathing, shaving, and laundry. Soap has been produced in its modern form ever since mass production took off in the 1790s.5 This product’s rich history has led us to the soap we know and love today.
1
"FAQs: How Does Handwashing with Soap Work?," The Global Public-Private Partnership for Handwashing, 1, accessed March 3, 2017, http://globalhandwashing.org/about-handwashing/faqs/#how. 2 "Soap Facts," Global Soap Project, 1, accessed March 3, 2017, http://www.globalsoap.org/our-work/soap-facts/. 3 Ibid. 4 "Why Handwashing," The Global Public-Private Partnership for Handwashing, 1, accessed March 3, 2017, http://globalhandwashing.org/about-handwashing/why-handwashing/. 5 "The History of Soap - When Soap Became Popular?," Soap History, 1-2, accessed March 3, 2017, http://www.soaphistory.net/soap-history/history-of-soap/.
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Soap is sold worldwide and makes up a significant part of consumer spending.6 Euromonitor’s 1999 market analysis shows that soap and detergent products comprise 12.4% of household goods consumer spending in industrialized countries and 2.6% to 5% of household goods consumer spending in developing countries.7 Various soaps, like emoji, are used daily by citizens around the world. Soap deserves a spot in the emoji character set because of its worldwide usage and importance.
Top searches for soap, detergent, and shampoo worldwide. Image from Google Trends.8
Factors for Inclusion A. Compatibility. Not relevant. Soap is not featured in other platforms.
6
"The Global Market for Soaps," BVSDE Desarrollo Sostenible, 11, accessed March 3, 2017, http://www.bvsde.paho.org/bvsacd/cd27/globalmarketsoap.pdf. 7 Ibid, 10. 8 Google Trends analysis: https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?q=soap%20%2B%20detergent%20%2B%20shampoo,bath,shower,toilet,ha mburger
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B. Expected usage level. 1. Frequency. On Instagram, the combined results for #soap, #detergent, and #shampoo add up to 4,044,429 posts in total.9 The number of Instagram posts for the emoji is far higher than some comparable bathroom-related hotel grouping emoji,10 including #shower and #toilet, and is comparable to #bath (likely due to the Instagram-worthy qualities of bath bombs and bath colorings). Almost all of the #soap posts on Instagram contain varied types of handmade or mass-produced soap in the photos, while some #soap posts also are popular culture- or music-related. #soap+#detergent+#shampoo has almost 400 percent of the posts of the commonly-used #hamburger term.
Google Trends shows search interest for soap+detergent+shampoo that is about average compared to other bathroom-related emoji, including b ath, shower, and t oilet.11 Although the level of interest for soap+detergent+shampoo is lower than s hower by 9.5 percent and b ath by 9
As of 10:22 PM, March 2, 2017. Instagram analysis: https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/soap/?hl=en Ibid. 11 Google Trends analysis: https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?q=soap%20%2B%20detergent,bath,shower,toilet,hamburger 10
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32 percent, it has 200 percent of the interest of toilet. Also, soap+detergent+shampoo has undergone an especially strong upward trend and is likely to surpass the use of shower if it continues at the current rate of increase.
The level of soap emoji interest can also be considered in a larger context: the potential bathroom emoji exhibits more popularity than many other emoji keywords, such as those of the food emoji. For example, the term soap+detergent+shampoo has approximately 422 percent of the Google search results of the term hamburger, which represents the common hamburger emoji (shown as a trend in the above graph in purple.) It is important to remember that the soap emoji doesn’t exist yet, which may impact metrics. Therefore it is unsurprising that soap emoji doesn’t even register as a Google term when compared against current bathroom-related hotel emoji terms (bath emoji, shower emoji, toilet emoji):12
12
Google Trends analysis: https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?q=soap%20emoji,bath%20emoji,shower%20emoji,toilet%20emoji,hamburg er%20emoji
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However, the search for the nonexistent s oap emoji gives surprisingly comparable results against several current food emoji:13
This shows that a considerable number of people search for this emoji even though it doesn’t exist, demonstrating that there is a previous need and a current demand to be fulfilled for the soap emoji.
2. Multiple usages. Of course, the soap emoji can symbolize “soap,” “shampoo,” or “detergent.” Yet there is potential for a wide range of other uses: soap can represent the act of cleaning up, the idea of cleanliness, the thought of purity, or a reference to a “soapbox,” an item that allows someone to air their views publicly. Here is a mockup tweet of the soap emoji being used figuratively, in reference to music:
There is strong evidence that the soap emoji would also be used in popular culture as a symbol that represents figurative cleaning - as in “the cleaning of one’s sins or misdeeds,” and as a directive to “clean up one’s act,” “clean up one’s language,” or “stick a soap bar in one’s mouth.” “Soap in mouth” is massively popular as a meme: a Google search for “soap in mouth meme”
13
Google Trends analysis: https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?q=toothbrush%20emoji,soap%20emoji,grape%20emoji,pineapple%20emoji ,tomato%20emoji
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returns 25,700,000 results,14 3,450 percent as much as “cricket meme”.15 Here are examples of some of the wide range of images created for “soap in mouth meme”: 16
Additionally, soap has the potential to refer to several longstanding and well-loved popular culture references, including soap operas, telenovelas, and the ever-popular 1999 movie F ight Club, which has a motif of a soap bar. As of today, #fightclub alone has 560,382 posts on Instagram.17
14
Google Search analysis: https://www.google.com/search?q=soap+in+mouth+meme Google Search analysis: https://www.google.com/search?q=cricket+meme 16 Google Images: https://www.google.com/search?q=soap+in+mouth+meme&tbm=isch 17 As of 11:13 PM, March 2, 2017. Instagram analysis: https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/fightclub/?hl=en 15
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3. Use in sequences. The soap emoji could be combined with several of the f ace emoji to provide a unique set of comments or retorts. Below are several ideas for potential possibilities: “Disregarding a gaffe/faux pas” The person shrugging emoji in combination with the soap emoji would indicate that a person doesn’t really care if their language is “clean” or “dirty,” or about the consequences. Mockup tweet:
“Retort to/disapproval of a gaffe/faux pas” The person tipping hand emoji in combination with the soap emoji would create a sassy retort to a verbal mistake, or scorn for a poor choice of language. Mockup tweet:
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“Approval of dirty language” The soap emoji in conjunction with the face savouring delicious food emoji would indicate that a person approves of dirty language (and implies that they enjoy soap in their mouth.) Mockup tweet:
C. Image distinctiveness. Soap is a distinct emoji. A cartoonish representation of a soap bar is an appropriate image, given that other emoji have similarly cartoonish representations: compare the emoji for ghost, cheese wedge, chocolate bar, smiling face with heart-shaped eyes, and zipper-mouth face.
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It is relevant to mention that iPhone/Apple Twitter users occasionally refer to the Apple version of the three button mouse emoji as indistinct. Some users infrequently guess that this emoji represents a piece of gum or a bar of soap, although the Apple version of the three button mouse emoji is actually intended to be a representation of Apple’s Magic Mouse product.18 The author believes that the rare confusion over this emoji would be remedied by the introduction of an unambiguous soap emoji. Here is an example of the indistinctiveness of the three button mouse emoji:
The Apple version of the three button mouse emoji.
It is important to consider, however, that most users indicate that there is no confusion about the three button mouse emoji representing soap.
Notably, many Apple users explicitly ask for a soap emoji, indicating that the three button mouse emoji is almost certainly not interpreted as a soap bar: 18
"Three Button Mouse Emoji," Emojipedia, 1, accessed March 3, 2017, http://emojipedia.org/three-button-mouse/.
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The soap emoji design is distinctive in color and pattern from the Apple three button mouse emoji, and should easily remedy any confusion over the official “bar of soap” in the Apple character set.
D. Completeness. The current bathroom-related emoji set (bath emoji, shower emoji, and toilet emoji) does not contain soap, which is arguably the most important and versatile item used in the bathroom. By including the soap emoji, the limited bathroom-related set will reflect a more useful, relevant, and popular range of activities.
E. Frequently requested. The soap emoji is very frequently requested on Twitter: there have been 139 requests for the emoji on the platform from January 1, 2016 to March 3, 2017,19 with a new request for the soap emoji tweeted on average every 3.07 days. The tweets below, selected from real Twitter posts under the search term “soap emoji”, demonstrate the many possible applications for the emoji as described above.20 The soap emoji used literally:
19 20
Twitter analysis: https://twitter.com/search?q=soap%20emoji&src=typd Ibid.
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The soap emoji as a completion of the set of the current bathroom emoji:
The soap emoji used to communicate “wash out one’s mouth for using foul language”: (Author’s note: This was wildly popular and would likely become one of the main metaphorical usages.)
The soap emoji as a reference to the popular novel and movie Fight Club:
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And, of course, the soap emoji used in other creative ways:
Counterarguments to Factors for Exclusion F. Overly specific. The soap emoji is not overly specific - it represents exactly what the name describes, while leaving room for figurative interpretation. Note that other emoji in the hotel grouping are perhaps more rigid - SHOWER only represents a shower, nothing more; BATH only represents a bath, nothing more; TOILET only represents a toilet, nothing more. What sets soap apart from the other hotel emoji is that it could also take on secondary meanings such as “cleanliness” or “scrubbing” if warranted, or additional metaphorical meanings as shown above.
G. Open-ended. Soap is unique in that it is a worldwide phenomenon, used in bathing and cleaning regardless of culture or location. For that reason, it is unlike any other bathroom item. The soap emoji represents a concrete concept that is used worldwide.
H. Already representable. The soap emoji is unique.
I. Logos, brands, UI icons, signage, specific people, deities. Not relevant. No brand name should be included on the soap bar in the emoji, and preferably no text at all should be used on the soap bar in order to maximize language interoperability.
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J. Transient. Soap was invented in 2800 BC and has remained wildly popular ever since.21 Humanity’s love of cleanliness and usage of soap show no signs of slowing down.
K. Like compatibility emoji. Not applicable. Soap should be added because it is arguably the most important part of the bathroom, and because it has widespread real-world and online use.
21
"The History of Soap - When Soap Became Popular?," Soap History, 1, accessed March 3, 2017, http://www.soaphistory.net/soap-history/history-of-soap/.
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Provided images. 72x72 (no padding): Full-color
B/W
5000x5000 (padded): Full-color
B/W
Soap emoji graphics created by Rob Schwartz and released under C C0 1.0.
Emoji ordering. The soap emoji should be added to the “Travel and Places” category, specifically in the hotel grouping. This emoji should be placed between the couch and lamp emoji and the toilet emoji, in order to not disrupt the series of furniture (bed, couch) and the series of restroom installments (toilet, shower, bathtub).
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The revised hotel grouping:
(Author’s note: the hotel category truly is a perfect location for the soap emoji. After all, tiny soap packages are often known as hotel freebies!)
Suggested annotations. Suggested annotations include “soap,” “detergent,” “shampoo,” “toiletries,” “clean,” and “wash.”
Conclusion. When I mention that I’m working on a soap emoji proposal, many people respond with: “I thought there already was a soap emoji!” Admittedly, I also thought this was true before I started this document - it seemed to me that such a ubiquitous and popular daily item would be represented with an emoji. Now that I know there is no soap emoji, I have realized through my research that the arguments to add one are immensely convincing. For one, soap is a lasting daily global trend and one of humanity’s most important inventions. Soap is also popular in comparison to current bathroom emoji terms on Instagram, Twitter, and Google Trends. In terms of usage, the soap emoji would provide a rich, distinctive “cheeky” icon that could operate directly as well as metaphorically: soap would be used unlike any other emoji to describe the product itself and the idea of “freshness,” “clean language,” or “cleaning up one’s act,” as well as a score of ever-popular and evolving pop-culture references. Of course, Twitter already shows strong support for a litany of non-literal soap emoji uses. This fact, combined with the existence of searches for this emoji by name on Google Trends, leads me to believe that a soap emoji will be used in popular, creative ways I cannot dream of yet. Both the hard data and the pulse of the web show that the soap emoji would provide an extremely strong addition to the current Unicode character standard.
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Works cited. "2F2028a133-dd96-45af-8f58-c7ca6e42b2c0.jpg." Typeset-beta.imgix.net. Accessed March 3, 2017. https://typeset-beta.imgix.net/rehost%2F2016%2F9%2F13%2F2028a133-dd96-45af-8f58 -c7ca6e42b2c0.jpg. "FAQs: How Does Handwashing with Soap Work?" The Global Public-Private Partnership for Handwashing. Accessed March 3, 2017. http://globalhandwashing.org/about-handwashing/faqs/#how. "FAQs: What about People Who Don’t Have Access to Soap?" The Global Public-Private Partnership for Handwashing. Accessed March 3, 2017. http://globalhandwashing.org/about-handwashing/faqs/#access. "Fight-club-poster.jpg." 9to5Toys. Accessed March 3, 2017. https://9to5toys.files.wordpress.com/2015/06/fight-club-poster.jpg. "Full Emoji Data, v5.0 — Beta." Unicode Consortium. Accessed March 3, 2017. http://unicode.org/emoji/charts-beta/full-emoji-list.html. "Soap Facts." Global Soap Project. Accessed March 3, 2017. http://www.globalsoap.org/our-work/soap-facts/. "The Global Market for Soaps." BVSDE Desarrollo Sostenible. Accessed March 3, 2017. http://www.bvsde.paho.org/bvsacd/cd27/globalmarketsoap.pdf. "The History of Soap - When Soap Became Popular?" Soap History. Accessed March 3, 2017. http://www.soaphistory.net/soap-history/history-of-soap/. "Three Button Mouse Emoji." Emojipedia. Accessed March 3, 2017. http://emojipedia.org/three-button-mouse/. "Why Handwashing." The Global Public-Private Partnership for Handwashing. Accessed March 3, 2017. http://globalhandwashing.org/about-handwashing/why-handwashing/. "Why Handwashing: Health." The Global Public-Private Partnership for Handwashing. Accessed March 3, 2017. http://globalhandwashing.org/about-handwashing/why-handwashing/health/.
