I think that communication is a big one, as we hardly ever see each other....the reality of suburban existence! The big plus about being in a large ruralish village was that you were forever bumping into people. So you could develop an idea - any idea from a children's holiday club to a new study group - over a period of time. This helped us all to feel a way towards creating something which a lot of people felt happy buying into, and therefore made it a priority to support. My current experience, having organised a LOT of courses and events, is that people think of it as something 'they' (the church') are doing which "I will buy into if I feel like it (and perhaps more to the point remember about) on the day".
Jane