<P>Bestselling authors and world-renowned marketing strategists Al and Laura Ries usher in the new era of public relations. <P>Today's major brands are born with publicity, not advertising. A closer look at the history of the most successful modern brands shows this to be true. In fact, an astonishing number of brands, including Palm, Starbucks, the Body Shop, Wal-Mart, Red Bull and Zara have been built with virtually no advertising. <P>Using in-depth case histories of successful PR campaigns coupled with those of unsuccessful advertising campaigns, <I>The Fall of Advertising</I> provides valuable ideas for marketers -- all the while demonstrating why <UL><LI>advertising lacks credibility, the crucial ingredient in brand building, and how only PR can supply that credibility; <LI>the big bang approach advocated by advertising people should be abandoned in favor of a slow build-up by PR; <LI>advertising should only be used to maintain brands once they have been established through publicity.</LI></UL><P>Bold and accessible, <I>The Fall of Advertising</I> is bound to turn the world of marketing upside down.</P>