Org mode allows logging timestamps and making notes when changing to a TODO keyword:
TODO(!) | DONE(!) However, org-insert-todo-heading does not respect this. I'm wondering whether it should. For example, given the above keywords, the intent would most likely be to log when TODO headings are created and when they are marked finished. If one were to create a heading and mark it TODO using C-c C-t, then the state change would be logged. In other words, making a heading a TODO entry is considered a state change from " " to "some todo keyword". However, if one were to use C-S-RET, the new TODO heading would not have a timestamp logged. I can't think of a situation where the current behavior is desirable, so I am inclined to think that treating the creation of a TODO heading as a state change from a normal heading to a TODO heading would be more convenient.