Ask Me About My Map Collection (or my love of snowboarding!)

[omarmuhyar]

Hi everyone, I’m Omar Muhyar. Excited to be a part of the Pantheon Community!

As a Copywriter on the Marketing Team, I’m responsible for telling the stories of our diverse customer base and showcasing how they use the Pantheon WebOps Platform to drive results for their organization and improve their overall web experience.

Although I’ve only been at Pantheon for just over two months, I’m loving the company’s commitment to open source, support for both Drupal and WordPress communities, and focus on making the world a better place — by supporting nonprofits making an impact during these tough times.

Before coming to Pantheon, I worked for a digital marketing firm as an instructional designer to create engaging digital experiences for a myriad of brands, from prominent names in the outdoor industry to popular tech gadgets and wellness products. Before that, I was a marketing copywriter for a large e-commerce company focused on selling premium equipment and apparel for outdoor enthusiasts.

As you can imagine, I love both technology and getting after it outside. I have an academic background in geography/digital cartography — meaning I enjoy collecting old maps and scoping out new places to explore on Google Earth in my free time. I’m lucky enough to call the Wasatch Range of Northern Utah home (just outside of Salt Lake City), allowing me to regularly snowboard, hike, trail run, mountain bike, and boulder along the craggy peaks towering just above my backyard.

Feel free to ask me anything about my background, history using the web to create engaging digital content, interest in cartography, or numerous outdoor hobbies. Looking forward to talking to others in the Pantheon Community!

[katy.gray]

Hi Omar!
First of all, I love the picture! I’m sure you get to see some beautiful scenery living in Northern Utah and spending a lot of your time outdoors! I’ve always wanted to learn how to snowboard. I’m a beginner skier as of two years ago, and have always thought snowboarding looked so much cooler.

With an academic background in geography/digital cartography, how did you first get into copywriting? I’m curious if you are one of the lucky ones born with the innate ability to wield words or if it’s something you fell into and honed over the years.

Lastly, and I have to ask, do you have a standing work station? I feel as if I’ve glimpsed you standing in meetings, and it makes me realize I need to get up and move around more during the workday. I’ve always wanted a treadmill desk, but I haven’t mustered the motivation to actually get one.

[McKennaR]

Hey @omarmuhyar

Thanks for sharing a little bit about yourself! That photo is dreamy! I feel like once COVID is all over I need to visit [yesss, I kinda sorta just invited myself] because Utah looks amazing! I am also a huge fan of the outdoors myself In fact, I just got into snowboarding about a year or two ago now. I am not the greatest because I don’t get out to the mountains enough, but I enjoy it! Any tips for a newbie boarder?

I am also dying to hear more about your experience working on the brand side of things. How did you get into that work? How does it differ from your experience working in SaaS?

[omarmuhyar]

Hey Katy,

You should try out snowboarding! Think you’d love it. Learning is really tricky for the first year or so, then the curve mellows out and you progress much faster than skiing. More difficult for the first season, and you definitely take some bad spills — so wear a helmet and some pads if you’d like to learn, especially on that icy Midwest snow (if that’s where you’re riding).

My journey into copywriting is actually pretty coincidental. I wasn’t able to find much work after graduating back in 2011, just due to the economic downturn that the country was still recovering from.

Had a college friend hit me up to be a copywriter (thanks, Steph!) for a small subsidiary of Footlocker at the time called CCS — focused on selling skateboards and lifestyle apparel, as I used to skate quite a bit when I was younger (no longer skate, as peeling myself from the pavement at the age of 31 isn’t so appealing these days).

This opportunity was a great introduction into the world of copywriting and digital marketing. I had written quite a bit in college, just from taking a slew of different geography, urban planning, philosophy, and political science courses, so transitioning to copywriting wasn’t too difficult. It did take a bit of effort to learn how to sell things and write short, compelling copy, but ultimately, I found it both fun and engaging.

And I do have a standing workstation. It’s honestly very DIY, in the sense that it’s an Ikea end table with a keyboard stand bolted to it but it works quite well.

[omarmuhyar]

McKenna,

Feel free to visit whenever (obviously once Covid’s no longer a concern)! Think it would be fun to meet up with any Pantheor that’s traveling through in the future. Especially if anyone wants to go snowboarding/skiing or just check out the local mountains. There’s a ton to do around here outdoors, and it’s all within like 15 to 20-minutes of downtown — making it really easy to access.

I’d say for a newbie rider, it’s all about getting in your reps in and finding a crew of people to ride with that are slightly better than you — just to show you how to ride and push your skill set. Start out with a list of things you want to learn (popping ollies/airs over rollers, maybe a frontside 180, better carving skills, etc.), then either find a mentor to teach you how to do those things or get a few lessons to improve your skills.

As far as branding goes, I really was steeped in branding while I worked in the marketing department for Backcountry. I was able to tackle some larger campaigns around the annual Cyber-5 Sale, work with talented folks on messaging and our brand proposition, as well as develop new product names and descriptions for our in-house apparel and gear at the time.

[katie.richards]

Omar, how am I learning just now that you love maps?! I have many maps and map-related artwork hanging in my house, many of which have a significant meaning for my family Do you have a favorite map that you own?

[omarmuhyar]

Katie,

I do! It’s this German map from 1954 hanging above my bed. The boundaries are a bit different, due to geopolitical changes after the cold war, but I really like the detail and coloration (especially all the mountain ranges of SE Asia ).

[katie.richards]

That is a beautiful one!

[McKennaR]

Ahhh I LOVE Back country Please tell me you’re pretty much a walk ambassador for them? I would probably have went broke working there!

Thanks for the boarding tips/suggestions I agree, I think if I had a group of people who enjoyed boarding to go with I would definitely be a lot better than I am now. It’s so hard to pick up the sport when you’re pretty much teaching yourself as you go. I am still trying to master the heel-toe without falling on my butt!

I will definitely take you up on that invite I went to SLC a few years ago & got to float in the salt water with brine [kinda felt gross at first but was a super fun experience]!