Oklahoma City deserves its place on the national stage as a city on the move. One of its primary drivers is the commercial real estate industry, which annually contributes billions of dollars in business and value to the local economy.
OKCREview is a credible, independent and sophisticated website devoted to providing news and analytical discussion about the local industry for both locals and, importantly, reaching a valuable national audience that wants and needs to know what is happening here.
Rather than a local site speaking only to locals, OKCREview broadens the city's reach beyond the traditional municipal boundaries. How? By leveraging relationships built over the past 25+ years with leading U.S. business decision-makers – investors, corporate real estate executives, and developers – who are constantly looking for new opportunities to grow and expand.
OKCREview’s coverage spans every major property type – office, retail, apartment, industrial and hotel – both downtown and in the suburbs. And it gets to the heart of what makes OKC really tick. Local real estate executives and corporate leaders “tune in” every day to find out what is happening not only in OKC proper, but how national news and trends impact what is happening in this dynamic city.
Ultimately, OKCREview is also more than a website. Its goal is to be a hub, a center for discussion via breaking e-news updates, weekly email newsletters and quarterly executive roundtables. All designed to grow Oklahoma City’s presence and prominence in the greater national community.
Ben Johnson, President & Founder
An Oklahoma City native, Ben Johnson has spent the last 25+ years eating, sleeping and breathing all things commercial real estate in venues across the country, including Dallas, New York, Miami and Atlanta.
Ben is connected to the movers and shakers in the commercial real estate industry from coast to coast. Now he brings a fresh perspective to the world of commercial real estate in OKC. His past work includes:
Editor/Publisher, National Real Estate Investor Magazine
Editor-in-Chief, Shopping Center World Magazine
Transformed 40-year-old commercial real estate magazine (NREI) into industry thought leader in the 1990s. Became a “go-to” source for national media, including CNBC,
The Wall Street Journal,
The New York Times, and the
Chicago Tribune.
Creative Director/Director of Real Estate Marketing, Wells Real Estate Funds
Unlike many professional journalists, Ben has real-world, inside-the-industry experience. In the go-go world of the mid-2000s, he served as the Director of Real Estate Marketing with Atlanta-based Wells Real Estate Funds, where he was responsible for all marketing programs and media relations for the company’s $6 billion, 130+ national property portfolio. As a member of the Wells senior leadership team, Ben helped drive strategies for acquisitions, dispositions, asset management, tenant services and new business development. (Ask him about the Aon Center purchase in Chicago sometime.)
Publishing Director, CoStar Group Inc.
Managed the company’s extensive news division for 65 major markets and 100,000+ subscribers across the United States. Launched
CoStar Advisor, a weekly e-newsletter service, and
Atlanta Property News, a bi-monthly print tabloid.
Director, American Airlines Publishing
Led the creation and production of a dozen magazines and websites in the financial services, tourism and airline industries for (once upon a time) the world’s largest airline.
Pedigreed in Journalism
Holding a Bachelor of Journalism from the University of Missouri-Columbia, aka the “world’s greatest J-School,” is one of Ben’s proudest achievements. He also holds an Associate of Arts degree from Missouri Southern State University in Joplin, Mo.
Industry participant
Ben is an active member of the Commercial Real Estate Council, the Urban Land Institute and the National Association of Real Estate Editors.
Published Author
In December 2009, Penguin Group published Ben's first book, a biography on billionaire Chicago real estate/media mogul Sam Zell, entitled, "Money Talks, Bulls--t Walks, Inside the Contrarian Mind of Billionaire Mogul Sam Zell." It is available worldwide at all major bookstores and online at Amazon.com, Barnesandnoble.com and borders.com.
