The phrase "a key initial step" is correct and usable in written English.
You can use it when discussing the importance of a specific action or phase in a process or project that is crucial for success.
Example: "Identifying the target audience is a key initial step in developing an effective marketing strategy."
Alternatives: "a crucial first step" or "an essential starting point".
Substrate preparation is a key initial step in the production of quality thermal sprayed coatings.
For the last three decades, the amyloid cascade hypothesis, which posits Aβ deposition as a key initial step in the pathogenesis of AD, has been the dominant theory driving treatment development1.
Although the performance in these diverse applications is governed by a complex interplay between the nanomaterial, the properties of included drugs (if any), and the biological system, nanoparticle-membrane interactions constitute a key initial step and play a key role for the subsequent biological response.
A key initial step was determining how much virus is needed to infect an unvaccinated animal.
Priming T cell generation is a key initial step in T cell-based immune responses against tumor cells and pathogens [18], [25].
Platelet adhesion to collagen is a key initial step in arterial thrombosis.
The existence of amorphous calcium phosphate complexes and their coaggregation with amorphous calcium oxalate may be a key initial step in the mechanism leading to the formation of calcium oxalate (CaOx) stones.
Parents perceiving that their child has mental health problems is often a prerequisite for a referral to mental health care, and parental awareness of the existence of a problem has been identified as the key initial step in help-seeking [ 14].
"Raising the affordable housing low- and moderate-income goal to 50 percent was the key initial step in setting Fannie and Freddie on a path to insolvency," said Peter J. Wallison, a conservative scholar who sits on the Congressionally appointed Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission, which was created in 2009.
HA binding to cell surface glycans present on cells of the upper respiratory tract is the key initial step in viral infection; indeed, HA has been found to be one of the key viral genes involved in infectivity and transmission [ 11].
Local invasion by and dissemination of cancer cells from a primary tumor are key initial steps of metastasis, the most lethal aspect of cancer.
