DUBAI Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain severed their ties with Qatar on Monday, accusing it of supporting terrorism and opening up the worst rift in years among some of the most powerful states in the Arab world.

Iran — long at odds with Saudi Arabia and a behind-the-scenes target of the move — immediately blamed U.S. President Donald Trump for setting the stage during his recent trip to Riyadh.

Gulf Arab states and Egypt have already long resented Qatar’s support for Islamists, especially the Muslim Brotherhood which they regard as a dangerous political enemy.

The coordinated move, with Yemen and Libya’s eastern-based government joining in later, created a dramatic rift among the Arab nations, many of which are in OPEC.

Announcing the closure of transport ties with Qatar, the three Gulf states gave Qatari visitors and residents two weeks to leave. Qatar was also expelled from the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen.

Oil giant Saudi Arabia accused Qatar of backing militant groups — some backed by regional arch-rival Iran — and broadcasting their ideology, an apparent reference to Qatar’s influential state-owned satellite channel al Jazeera.

« (Qatar) embraces multiple terrorist and sectarian groups aimed at disturbing stability in the region, including the Muslim Brotherhood, ISIS (Islamic State) and al-Qaeda, and promotes the message and schemes of these groups through their media constantly, » Saudi state news agency SPA said.

It accused Qatar of supporting what it described as Iranian-backed militants in its restive and largely Shi’ite Muslim-populated Eastern region of Qatif and in Bahrain.

Qatar said it was facing a campaign aimed at weakening it, denying it was interfering in the affairs of other countries.

« The campaign of incitement is based on lies that had reached the level of complete fabrications, » the Qatari foreign ministry said in a statement.

Iran saw America pulling the strings.

« What is happening is the preliminary result of the sword dance, » Hamid Aboutalebi, deputy chief of staff of Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani, tweeted in a reference to Trump’s recent visit to Saudi Arabia.

Trump and other U.S. officials participated in a traditional sword dance during the trip in which he called on Muslim countries to stand united against Islamist extremists and singled out Iran as a key source of funding and support for militant groups.

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson told reporters in Sydney on Monday that the spat would not effect the fight against Islamist militants and that Washington has encouraged its Gulf allies to resolve their differences.

A split between Doha and its closest allies can have repercussions around the Middle East, where Gulf states have used their financial and political power to influence events in Libya, Egypt, Syria, Iraq and Yemen.

(For a graphic on trade balance between Qatar and its diplomatic critics, click reut.rs/2rsbaTi)

FALLOUT

The economic fallout loomed immediately, as Abu Dhabi’s state-owned Ethihad Airways, Dubai’s Emirates Airline and budget carrier Flydubai said they would suspend all flights to and from Doha from Tuesday morning until further notice.

Qatar Airways said on its official website it had suspended all flights to Saudi Arabia.

Qatar’s stock market index sank 7.5 percent with some of the market’s top blue chips hardest hit.

The measures are more severe than during a previous eight-month rift in 2014, when Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the UAE withdrew their ambassadors from Doha, again alleging Qatari support for militant groups. At that time, travel links were maintained and Qataris were not expelled.

The diplomatic broadside threatens the international prestige of Qatar, which hosts a large U.S. military base and is set to host the 2022 World Cup. It has for years presented itself as a mediator and power broker for the region’s many disputes.

Kristian Ulrichsen, a Gulf expert at the U.S-based Baker Institute, said if Qatar’s land borders and air space were closed for any length of time « it would wreak havoc on the timeline and delivery » of the World Cup.

« It seems that the Saudis and Emiratis feel emboldened by the alignment of their regional interests – toward Iran and Islamism – with the Trump administration, » Ulrichsen said. « (They) have decided to deal with Qatar’s alternative approach on the assumption that they will have the (Trump) administration’s backing. »

Qatar used its media and political clout to support long-repressed Islamists during the 2011 pro-democracy « Arab Spring » uprisings in several Arab countries.

Muslim Brotherhood groups allied to Doha are now mostly on the backfoot in the region, especially after a 2013 military takeover in Egypt ousted the elected Islamist president.

The former army chief and now president, Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, along with the new government’s allies in Saudi Arabia and the UAE, blacklist the Brotherhood as a terrorist organization.

Egypt, the Arab world’s most populous nation, said on its state news agency that Qatar’s policy « threatens Arab national security and sows the seeds of strife and division within Arab societies according to a deliberate plan aimed at the unity and interests of the Arab nation. »

Oil prices rose after the moves against Qatar, which is the biggest supplier of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and a major seller of condensate – a low-density liquid fuel and refining product derived from natural gas.

(Additional reporting by William Maclean, Mohammed el-Sherif, Sylvia Westall, Tom Finn and Amina Ismail; Editing by Jeremy Gaunt)

A Spanish man tried to defend a woman who was being stabbed by one of the London Bridge attackers with his skateboard.

Ignacio Echeverría, 39, saw the attack unfolding at London Bridge on Saturday night, and rushed to help the woman.

But there is growing concern for Mr Echeverria, who has not been seen since.

The HSBC employee, from Madrid, is one of a number of people who put their personal safety at risk in order to help others during the attack, which left seven people dead and 48 injured.

According to his father, friends « saw him lying on the floor on the sidewalk after defending someone with his skateboard ».

He is reportedly not listed among the dead, not all of whom have been named by police.

• London attack: Live updates

An off-duty policeman – an amateur rugby player – was stabbed after tackling one of the three attackers. He remains in critical condition.

Met Police commissioner Cressida Dick praised the « utterly heroic » actions of the officer, who was taken to hospital in a police car.

She added: « It’s hard to pick out individual stories but I am immensely proud of him and what he did. »

A British Transport Police officer, who faced the attackers armed only with his baton, was seriously injured but is now in a stable condition.

Chief Constable Paul Crowther from the BTP said the bravery he showed was « outstanding ».

Romanian baker Florin Morariu has been described as a hero on social media. The man, who works at Bread Ahead bakery in Borough Market, saw a commotion outside the shop on Saturday evening.

He invited some distressed Brazilian women into the shop and gave them a glass of water.

They explained that three men were stabbing revellers in the market.

He said he grabbed two crates and went outside to find the attackers and defend the injured.

Speaking to the Victoria Derbyshire show, he said: « I felt pity for the victims, I didn’t know how to handle things or react, I thought to myself I’m also in danger.

I just threw the crate at [one of the attackers]. I threw the first crate and I knew he was going to dodge it. while he was dodging it I walked towards him and hit him in the head with the other crate. »

He then said a policeman shouted at him to stand back. The officer then discharged a grenade.

Giovanni Sagristani, 38, and his friends were in the El Pastor restaurant on Stoney Street when one of the attackers came in and stabbed a woman in the chest.

« He came in shouting and just stabbed her, » he said.

Mr Sagristani’s partner Carlos Pinto, 33 – who works as a critical care nurse in London – attended to the woman, with the help of his friend, another nurse.

« They took some ice and cloths and tried to stop the bleeding. She lost half a litre of blood in the beginning. He was keeping pressure on the wound, » Mr Sagristani said.

He said fellow diners had managed to push the attacker out of the restaurant by throwing chairs and bottles at him. Once the attacker was outside, staff lowered a security gate and locked people inside.

« After the initial moment of panic, everyone tried to help this girl and stay calm. We were all at the back of the restaurant. There were shots going off outside and we didn’t know what was going on. »

Mr Sagristani said it was more than two hours before the paramedics were able to reach them.

« They kept her conscious. It was very lucky they were there, » he added.

Eyewitness Gerard Vowls told the BBC how he tried to stop the attackers stabbing a woman. He threw bottles, pint glasses and chairs at the men.

« I tried to help, but at the end of the day I was defenceless, » he said.

Sunday Express business editor Geoff Ho attempted to help a bouncer at the Southwark Tavern, who was being set upon by two of the attackers.

The boxing and martial arts enthusiast is currently in intensive care after being stabbed in the neck.

Footage of him being escorted to an ambulance by police has been posted on the Daily Express website.

In it he is clutching his neck and using his shirt as a bandage.

After the attack Mr Ho wrote on Facebook: « Don’t know whether it was stupid or noble to jump in and break up the fight outside the Southwark Tavern, but two a***s trying to do over the lone bouncer on the door isn’t happening on my watch. »

On Monday the journalist wrote on Twitter that he had been in surgery and was « on the mend ».

Consultant at the Royal London Hospital Dr Malik Ramadhan was cycling home after his shift at Accident and Emergency when he sensed something was wrong.

He was cycling south on Tower Bridge, when he noticed emergency vehicles speeding towards the London Bridge area.

« It was clear that something was happening both from the way they were driving and the number of vehicles. »

He said: « Given what’s been happening, I turned back to work. »

When he arrived at the Royal London a major incident had been declared, and on-call staff were ready to treat all of the patients within 30 minutes.

« The 12 were all very badly injured. The people who had been stabbed, had been stabbed with an intent to kill. »

Patients were « startled to the point that they couldn’t speak ».

Dr Ramadhan added that many doctors and nurses are not drinking on the weekends in case a major attack occurs.

Student nurse Rhiannon Owen was at a cash point when a taxi driver shouted at her to run.

« I saw the knife and I didn’t turn around again. I just started running as fast as I could, » she said.

The 19-year-old, from Cheshire, saw the attacker behind her and ran into Applebee’s pub where she joined 30 or 40 others and hid in a stock room.

She said she owes her life to that taxi driver, and appealed for him to get in touch: « You saved my life and you let me go and make sure other people were safe. »

Elsewhere, there were tales of generosity as people did their bit to support the emergency services.

Supermarket workers were pictured offering food and drink to police officers on Sunday morning.

A paramedic who was at the scene said the manager of a McDonald’s closed the restaurant to the public and gave all remaining food and crates of water to the emergency services.

Paul Ashworth, from Surrey, has been cycling around the London Bridge area giving out water to the police.

« I’ve just come to give the police some cold water. It’s nothing in comparison to what they do. It’s just to try and give something back. They’re protecting us, saving our lives, » he said.

The plumber, who cycled 21 miles from the Surrey border into London, said: « We’ve just to got to keep together – the whole world has. »

Automotive brands dominate digital display advertising spend in Australia, accounting for 20.3% of the display market.

Total online advertising spend continues to grow, with 2017’s first quarter expenditure at $1.86 billion, up 7.2% year on year, according to research by the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB).

This represents a seasonal decline of 5.8% in fourth quarter expenditure, although classified increased by 7.1% compared to Q4 and had the strongest year on year growth of 15.9%. All categories grew year on year with search up 6% and display 4.5%.

Overall, auto is the category that dominates digital display advertising spend. It now accounts for 20.3% of the display market, with travel share up 6.4% compared to Q4 and consistent with a seasonally higher spend for this category in Q1 each year.

Auto has now been the number one display category for five years, demonstrating that automobile brands were quick to embrace and maintain their investment in digital.

“Digital advertising is a key component of our client’s overall advertising spend; it is measurable and actionable and their investment in the medium is increasing,” says Anthony Saines, IAB board member and managing director – commercial, at Carsales. “Digital is able to effectively drive personalised experiences across multiple platforms, from consideration through purchase. Brands are able to tailor their message to the appropriate audience which is driving exceptional results within the auto category.”

Mobile continues its exponential growth, with mobile expenditure at $653 million in Q1, up 29% year on year and a minimal seasonal dip of 1% compared to the previous quarter. Mobile continues to represent more than 50% of the display market (53.5%) – a significant increase from the 21.5% it represented just three years ago. This reflects consumption habits. In March, 63% of digital time was spent on smart phones in Australia, as well as the continuing maturity of mobile advertising campaigns.

Video also continues to increase its share of advertising expenditure. It now accounts for 36.3% of display, a significant 11% share increase from just three years ago when it accounted for just 25.3%. Within the video category, FMCG and retail account for 30% of total video spend and are the top two video advertiser categories. Interestingly, the real estate category which has a high general display spend (accounting for 12.1% of general display) has yet to fully embrace video which suggests considerable upside for future reporting quarters.

“The online advertising marketing continues to surpass historical year on year figures across all categories,” says Vijay Solanki, CEO of IAB Australia. “Significantly, mobile continues on its steep growth trajectory, further increasing its share of general display advertising both quarter on quarter and year on year. This speaks to both the ubiquity of smart phones within Australia and improved mobile advertising technology and creative as brands better understand the challenges and opportunities the platform offers. Our numbers also dovetail neatly with some of the headlines from this year’s Mary Meeker report, especially the global growth of mobile.”

Image copyright: racorn / 123RF Stock Photo

Email marketing is one of the most effective marketing methods for building brand awareness, staying top of mind and consistently converting leads.

Unfortunately, it’s also one of the most mismanaged marketing methods used by real estate agents.

More often than not, the agents who fail at email marketing do so because they don’t put enough thought into their marketing strategy.

If you haven’t succeeded yet, there’s a good chance you’re going about it the wrong way. With all the business-building potential email marketing offers, you should keep experimenting with different ideas until you find one that generates real results.

Implementing the following four tips will help you build a truly effective marketing campaign.

1. Make sure all emails are mobile friendly

Now, more than ever before, people are browsing the web and checking email with mobile devices.

According to this report by comScore, mobile-device usage accounts for 60 percent of the time Americans spend consuming digital media. This means there’s a very good chance the people reading your marketing emails will be doing so from a mobile device.

To ensure your marketing emails impact your audience as intended, you need to make them attractive and easy to read on mobile devices.

Test all emails on Android and iOS devices prior to sending them out, and do this until you’ve run at least one successful email marketing campaign without mobile issues.

2. Segment your email subscribers

CRM software has evolved quite a bit over the years. If you use a modern CRM solution, it can help you boost the effectiveness of your email marketing by allowing for better targeting.

Segmenting your email subscribers based on certain CRM details will help you reach the right audience and will help prevent the loss of subscribers.

While you can certainly get creative with how you segment your email subscribers, one of the most effective methods is to group contacts by location.

If you host open houses or other real estate events regularly, emailing nearby contacts instead of emailing your entire contact database is a great way to reach the right people at the right time.

3. Make videos part of your marketing strategy

High-speed Internet is now the norm, and most of your contacts probably have more than enough bandwidth to stream videos with ease.

With that in mind, you should definitely incorporate videos into your email marketing strategy.

Videos are more powerful and more personal, and if you integrate them with a service like BombBomb, your messages are more likely to reach your audience in a meaningful way.

4. Analyze results and repeat what works

Not all email marketing strategies will work for you, but that won’t a problem unless you keep using the ones that fail.

Keep track of analytics, paying close attention to open and click-through rates. When these rates respond favorably to one of your strategies, take notice.

Tweak this strategy as needed and you’ll eventually get great results.

Finally, to ensure your marketing efforts pay off, have a solid follow-up plan in place.

Email marketing is great for staying top of mind, but that isn’t its sole use. Get the most out of your email marketing by using it to drive the growth of your real estate business.

Pat Hiban is the author of NYT best selling book “6 steps to 7 figures – A Real Estate Professional’s Guide to Building Wealth and Creating Your Destiny,” the founder of online real estate sales training site Rebus University and the host of Pat Hiban Interviews Real Estate Rockstars an Agent to Agent Real Estate Radio Podcast with Hiban Digital in Baltimore, Maryland. Follow him on Instagram or Twitter.

Email Pat Hiban