First I will check the projects website if it is properly done or just a piece of crap. Second is their product or application if it is really working or not. Third is the roadmap of the project that will give us hint whether one of those written in there actually is happening or in progress. Fourth is the idea of the project whether it is applicable or useful in the long run. Fifth is the project team of course because through them we can check their capability to do the job done. If you can see that they are active or they are participating community discussions maybe the project is legit but that is not really an assurance whether the project is worth investing in. Just make your own due deligence in choosing the right project to jump in.
The steps that you are mentioning are not wrong however if it was up to me I will put checking the project team above all, after all there are projects that may not be as groundbreaking as some others and yet if they have good developers willing to work for years on the project you will eventually get to see good results, on the other hand even if the idea behind a project is innovative and everything seems in order if the developers are lazy and irresponsible most likely that project will never develop successfully.