Christianity from the 3rd century onward lauded the "name of Jesus". That's right, it was not there in the first century. This motivating thread of worship was included in the Roman Bible (4th century). It gave a mental focus for christians as did the character of his mother Mary. It was the suffering of Jesus and the heartbreak of the mother which the believers could identify with in their own lives. In contrast it's hard to visualise God the Father in terms of humanity, although Michelangelo did a very good job of it on the Sistine chapel ceiling. People as a rule do not strongly identify with God, the exceptions to this are either institutionalised or become political leaders.
I imagine that from sifting through resignation letters coming to Bethel, it has been noticed that many Witnesses feel they can't have the personal attachment to Jesus offered by other religions (that a religion could offer such a thing is beyond me). Nevertheless recently baptised or disaffected JWs could feel that they are missing something when it comes to a close relationship with Jesus which can be had elsewhere.
The JW doctrine does not offer traditional comforts and if this means loss of membership they will make amends as you say Smiddy. However I cannot think that WT leaders have ever once changed fundamental doctrine by listening to what people are saying or wanting to believe. This could be an indicator of future developments to cope with declining interest.
The GB with forked tongue say "numbers are not important" but as we all know membership numbers are paramount to the cult because numbers equals income.