What it measures: Your project's ability to deliver efficient, high-quality technical solutions that outperform alternatives Why it matters: Superior technical performance ensures adoption by developers and creates sustainable competitive advantage
Key metrics:
Development advantage: Choose two specific areas (build speed, optimization, error handling, or bug detection) and demonstrate X% improvement over competitors.
Example: "Achieve 40% faster build times compared to leading alternatives."
What it measures: Your project's ability to attract and engage a developer community Why it matters: Strong community interest signals product-market fit and potential for ecosystem growth
Key metrics:
GitHub engagement: Achieve X stars by [milestone date].
Example: "Achieve 100+ stars by grant completion date."
What it measures: Your project's ability to attract and retain users Why it matters: User adoption validates the solution's real-world utility and market need
Key metrics:
Weekly user growth rate: Achieve X% week-over-week growth rate and reach a minimum of 100 active users by grant completion.
Example: "Maintain 10% weekly user growth and reach at least 100 active users by the end of the grant period.”
What it measures: The effectiveness of your documentation and onboarding process Why it matters: Excellent user experience drives retention and word-of-mouth growth
Key metrics:
Documentation effectiveness: X% of new users must successfully complete a standard onboarding task within Y minutes using only the provided documentation. Demonstrate the results through recorded user testing sessions, data from professional testing platforms like UserTesting, or comprehensive feedback surveys with quantifiable metrics showing completion rates and time-to-success.
Example: "70% of new users complete the core workflow within 30 minutes using only our documentation."