English and Filipino
Mike Villar is a data-driven digital marketing and business intelligence executive with over a decade of experience scaling ecommerce brands and digital marketplaces. Guided by Lean principles, he has led teams in both startup environments and large-scale organizations, including a successful eight-year run as Marketing Director at US Auto Parts. As the co-founder and CEO of Growth Rocket, Mike brings a scientific, experiment-based approach to marketing, rooted in analytics, performance, and real-world results.
Since 2015, he has helped build Growth Rocket into a trusted digital agency, known for its strategic, test-and-learn mindset. In 2019, Mike was named a Growth Mentor at 500 Startups, a global leader in venture funding and acceleration, further validating his authority in the digital marketing space.
Mike’s expertise spans ecommerce, growth strategy, and team leadership. Outside of the data and dashboards, he’s a fan of graphic novels and comic books, finding creativity and inspiration in visual storytelling.
Key Takeaways: Traditional marketing stacks built on siloed tools and manual workflows are fundamentally broken in today's data-rich, real-time marketing environment AI...
AI Search Optimization is reshaping the entire digital landscape by fundamentally altering how users discover, interact with, and convert through search ecosystems. Traditional SEO is no longer enough. To stay competitive, businesses—from startups to scale-ups—must integrate AI-driven strategies in content, customer acquisition, and media buying to win in the new age of Generative Engines and predictive search models fueled by machine learning.
AI agents are not just automating tasks—they're fundamentally transforming the way businesses acquire customers. From predictive lead scoring to hyper-personalized engagement, AI-driven customer acquisition is reshaping the funnel using data, generative learning, and intent signals. Startups and enterprise brands alike must adopt proactive AI SEO strategies, reimagine their site architecture, and integrate intelligent agents into their acquisition stack or risk being outpaced by data-native competitors.