---
id: '0004'
title: Trust signals that attract contributors
status: open
evidence: MODERATE
sources: 1
created: '2026-03-22'
---

## Claim

Must-have scaffolding before launch:

**Already done:** LICENSE (MIT), CONTRIBUTING.md, .github/ISSUE_TEMPLATE/

**Still needed:**
- `SECURITY.md` — even a simple "email security@eidosagi.com for vulnerabilities" signals maturity
- `CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md` — Contributor Covenant (industry standard)
- `.github/PULL_REQUEST_TEMPLATE.md` — checklist for PRs
- `CHANGELOG.md` — Keep a Changelog format, update with every release
- CI pipeline (GitHub Actions) — lint + test on macOS 13/14/15 + Python 3.11/3.12/3.13
- Pre-commit hooks (ruff) — shows code quality commitment
- 3-5 issues tagged `good first issue` before launch — contributors search GitHub for these

**The #1 contributor trust signal is maintainer responsiveness**, not code quality. Respond to every issue within 24 hours.

Semantic versioning from v0.1.0 signals intentionality even before 1.0.

## Supporting Evidence

> **Evidence: [MODERATE]** — https://dev.to/nastyox1/8-concrete-steps-to-get-stars-on-github-355c, https://dev.to/iris1031/github-star-growth-10k-stars-in-18-months-real-data-4d04, retrieved 2026-03-22

## Caveats

None identified yet.
