There are two types of companies in the business world: incumbents and insurgents. Find out why insurgent companies are on a mission to redefine their industry with a revenue-centric approach. Discover the five characteristics that insurgent companies share.

1. A S C E N S I O N S T R A T E G Y . C O M
INSURGENT
COMPANIES
REALIZE NO
POINTS ARE
SCORED IN
THE HUDDLE

2. A S C E N S I O N S T R A T E G Y . C O M
V I N C E L O M B A R D I , N F L C O A C H
“IF WINNING ISN’T
EVERYTHING, WHY DO
THEY KEEP SCORE?”

3. Today’s business world
effectively consists of two
types of companies:
incumbents and
insurgents.
A S C E N S I O N S T R A T E G Y . C O M

4. Incumbents are category
leaders with size, scale, and
ample financial resources
used to protect their market
leadership positions.

5. Insurgents are clever,
innovative, and highly
resourceful upstarts.
They commonly disrupt
established categories
with counter-intuitive
thinking that drives
accelerated growth.

6. I n c u m b e n t s i n v e s t s i g n i f i c a n t t i m e + r e s o u r c e s
h u d d l i n g i n m e e t i n g s … i n s u r g e n t s i n v e s t t h e i r
t i m e c h a s i n g r e v e n u e .
A S C E N S I O N S T R A T E G Y . C O M

7. S m a r t i n s u r g e n t c o m p a n i e s a r e r e v e n u e - c e n t r i c
a n d s m a r t i n t h e i r a p p r o a c h .
T h e y s h a r e F I V E o f t h e s a m e b a s i c c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s .
A S C E N S I O N S T R A T E G Y . C O M

8. I n s u r g e n t s A l w a y s K n o w t h e S c o r e
Most companies analyze performance at the end of a fiscal period.
This is often too late to affect outcomes.
1

9. Insurgents Understand Numbers Don’t Lie,
But They May Mislead
Numbers often lack context causing executives to lose sight of the bigger picture.
2

10. Insurgent companies are
contextual + view numbers
from perspectives not
often thought of by
competitors.
A S C E N S I O N S T R A T E G Y . C O M

11. Insurgents First Sell To The Base, Then
Market To The Potential
Insurgent companies understand that those with a strong preference for your brand are the
least likely to defect to competitors and the likely to continue buying your products/services.
3

12. A S C E N S I O N S T R A T E G Y . C O M
INSURGENTS UNDERSTAND THAT THOSE
WITH A SOFT BRAND PREFERENCE ARE
OFTEN VULNERABLE TO COMPETITIVE
OFFERINGS.

13. A S C E N S I O N S T R A T E G Y . C O M
The "neutrals" are the
equivalent of the political
independents. They are
the classic comparison
shoppers and switch
brands frequently.

14. I n s u r g e n t s U n d e r s t a n d T h a t P r i c i n g
i s a D y n a m i c D i s c i p l i n e
Pricing today is a dynamic + complex discipline. As a result, many companies and industries have
employed sophisticated pricing strategies to optimize revenue. It’s called yield management.
4

15. A S C E N S I O N S T R A T E G Y . C O M
INSURGENTS UNDERSTAND THAT PRICING MUST
NOT BE BASED ON COMPETITIVE OFFERINGS, BUT
RATHER MORE SOPHISTICATED AND BASED ON
DYNAMIC MARKET CONDITIONS.

16. I n s u r g e n t s U n d e r s t a n d t h a t P r o m o t i o n s
a r e a T a c t i c , N o t a S t r a t e g y
Promotions are discounted or incentivized offers available for a specific period of time.
Many companies, however, do not use promotions intelligently.
5

17. Promotion should be used
to generate incremental
business only in periods
of soft demand.
Promotions can result in
either the dilution or
displacement of revenue.
A S C E N S I O N S T R A T E G Y . C O M

18. it's the insurgent companies that
grab the headlines with innovative
go-to-market strategies and
impressive financial
performance.
I N T O D A Y ' S
W O R L D
A S C E N S I O N S T R A T E G Y . C O M

19. helps companies analyze their
competitive market positioning
and adopt insurgent
strategies + programs that drive
measurable revenue and market
share growth.
A S C E N S I O N
A S C E N S I O N S T R A T E G Y . C O M

20. T H A N K Y O U
For more information on how Ascension can help your company contact
Craig Apatov, Managing Partner at capatov@ascensionstrategy.com
or call 404-250-4547.
A S C E N S I O N S T R A T E G Y . C O M
A S C E N S I O N G R O W T H &
I N N O V A T I O N S T R A T E G I E S