How did portable phonographs help Jehovah’s Witnesses spread their message under Rutherford?

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Three Jehovah's Witnesses stand beside literature carts, holding religious magazines, at the Star Ferry Pier under a blue sign for City Hall and MTR Station in Hong Kong. — Jehovah’s Witness Adherents of the Jehovah's Witness movement distributing literature about their faith in Hong Kong, China.

Under the leadership of Joseph Franklin Rutherford, Jehovah’s Witnesses were molded into a dedicated cadre of evangelists. To facilitate the spread of their message, Rutherford equipped members with portable phonographs. These devices were used to play his recorded "sermonettes" directly to the public, both on street corners and within the living rooms of prospective converts.1