4-22-13

3rd Hour

Colthorp

Advertising and Mass Production in the 1920’s

Mass production went hand in hand with advertising by creating a cycle in which people would constantly purchase products, while the big businesses were able to constantly put more products on the market. The new wave of advertising in conjunction with mass production contributed greatly to the sense of consumerism, and materialism which was growing rapidly in America in the roaring 20’s.

The assembly line played a large role in mass production. Nearly every large company utilized this technique, whether they produced radios, cars, or everyday household appliances. No matter what the product was that was rolling off these assembly lines, you can be sure there was a lot of it. This simple assembly line method reduced labor hours, meaning the companies could cut back on how much they paid their employees. Companies were also able to lower prices on their goods so more Americans could purchase them. Soon enough, products were flying off the shelf due to a new reimagined marketing technique used simultaneously with mass production, and businesses were now able to replace them just as fast.

It wasn’t long before companies realized not only that they were able to move product like never before, but other businesses were able to do the same thing. This called for some sort of system that would make a certain product stand out from the rest of them. The system was advertising.