# api-onboarding

Reduce time-to-first-API-call (TTFAC) by optimizing every step of the developer onboarding journey.

## What This Skill Covers

- **Measuring TTFAC**: Instrumentation and benchmarks
- **Auth Simplification**: Removing authentication friction
- **Sandbox Environments**: Risk-free experimentation
- **Interactive Documentation**: Try-it-now experiences
- **Common Failure Points**: Where developers get stuck and why
- **Optimization Framework**: Systematic onboarding improvement

## When to Use This Skill

- Designing new API onboarding flows
- Diagnosing high developer drop-off rates
- Reducing time-to-value for new developers
- Building or improving API sandboxes
- Creating interactive documentation

## Key Principle

Time-to-first-API-call is the most predictive metric for developer adoption. Every minute of friction costs you users. Optimize ruthlessly.

## TTFAC Benchmarks

| Rating | Time | Experience |
|--------|------|------------|
| Excellent | < 5 min | "This is amazing" |
| Good | 5-15 min | "Pretty straightforward" |
| Poor | 30-60 min | "This is frustrating" |
| Failing | > 60 min | "I'll try something else" |

## Quick Wins

1. Show API key immediately after signup (not buried in settings)
2. Add copy buttons to all code examples
3. Pre-fill examples with the developer's actual API key
4. Provide generous sandbox rate limits
5. Add "Try it" buttons to API reference pages

## Related Skills

- `docs-as-marketing` - Quickstart documentation
- `sdk-dx` - SDK that simplifies onboarding
- `developer-sandbox` - Interactive playground environments