Activating Tiles

I'm working on a game with a core mechanic of tile laying. The tiles will produce different resources that will allow the player to buy better tiles, earn VPs, and etc.

However, I'm having a hard time deciding the best way to activate the tiles to produce those resources.

What are some of the best ways you've seen it done?

For instance, in Glen More, when a tile is laid down, it activates itself and all the tiles near it.

In Helvetia, a tile is activated when the worker on the tile gets used.