Market report · Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
The State of Outbound Sales in Austin, 2026
How outbound selling looks across the Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX metro right now: who the buyers are, which trades have room, what is being built, what a rep costs to hire here. Then a 4-tool kit to work the market this month.
- 5,628business sites with 20+ people across the categories trades sell to, #30 of our 100 metros
- 6.0buyer sites per commercial landscaping contractor, #9 of 100 markets: the best rank of any trade here
Sites: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023; rank among the 100 metros on our market pages. Room: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023 sites per contractor in U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, private ownership, 2026 Q1, among markets with at least 10 contractors.
Executive summary Read this if nothing else
5 things to know about outbound sales in Austin
Biggest buyer pool
Restaurants: 2,023 sites
with 20 or more people, the largest buyer category in Austin-Round Rock, ahead of retail stores (1,184).
Where the metro leans
Commercial property managers: 2.08x the U.S. mix
Also over-represented: hosting and data processing companies (1.70x) and nonresidential building owners (1.63x). Trades that serve these buyers have more of them here than the national average suggests.
Most room
Commercial Landscaping: #9 of 100 markets
6.0 buyer sites with 20+ people for each of 581 local commercial landscaping contractors. The most crowded is managed service providers, #92 of 100.
Biggest reason to call
Austin-Bergstrom International Airport expansion, Over $5 billion
Under way; Concourse M as soon as 2027, Concourse B early 2030s. One of 5 named, sourced projects in this report.
Hiring locally
$124,700 for an in-house SDR's first year (illustrative)
At a $55,000 base salary, once commission, payroll taxes and benefits, tools, recruiting and training, turnover and manager time are added, before ramp time.
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, private ownership, 2026 Q1; project sources as of 2026-09; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025. Full list at the end.
Chapter 01 The market
Who buys in Austin-Round Rock
5,628 business sites in Austin-Round Rock have 20 or more people on site in the categories commercial trades sell to. That ranks #30 of the 100 metros we publish. Here is what those buyers are and where they sit.
The largest buyer categories
Sites with 20 or more people are the ones worth an SDR's time: big enough to have a facility lead, a service budget and a contract that comes up for renewal. The "vs. U.S. mix" column compares each category's share of local employment with its national share (1.00x is the U.S. average).
| Category | Sites with 20+ | All sites | vs. U.S. mix | 1-yr change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RestaurantsLargest pool | 2,023 | 5,486 | 1.16x | +101 |
| Retail stores | 1,184 | 6,650 | 0.96x | -40 |
| Medical, dental and outpatient offices | 616 | 5,556 | 1.14x | +144 |
| Wholesale distributors | 395 | 2,210 | 0.80x | -67 |
| Manufacturing plants | 387 | 1,619 | 0.92x | -9 |
| Senior living and nursing | 195 | 412 | 0.68x | -5 |
| Hotels | 165 | 374 | 1.21x | +7 |
| Grocery stores | 164 | 888 | 0.80x | -2 |
| Churches and religious organizations | 139 | 895 | 0.15x | +5 |
| Bank and credit union offices | 117 | 1,289 | 1.19x | +36 |
Austin-Round Rock leans toward commercial property managers (2.08x), hosting and data processing companies (1.70x) and nonresidential building owners (1.63x). A trade that already sells to those buyers elsewhere has a deeper pool here than the national numbers suggest, and a case study from one of them travels well on the phone.
It is thinner than the U.S. mix in churches and religious organizations (0.15x) and trucking companies (0.49x). A program built around those buyers runs out of fresh accounts sooner here.
Growing fastest over the past year, by establishment count: medical, dental and outpatient offices (+144), restaurants (+101) and commercial property managers (+37). New sites have no incumbent vendor yet.
The metro
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX: 5 counties in this report's counts.
Travis County, Williamson County and Hays County hold 96% of the larger business sites, so most programs start there.
Where the sites are
| County | Sites with 20+ | Share of metro |
|---|---|---|
| Travis CountyStart here | 3,583 | 64% |
| Williamson County | 1,242 | 22% |
| Hays County | 563 | 10% |
| Bastrop County | 108 | 2% |
| Caldwell County | 42 | 1% |
Chapter 02 The competition
Which trades have the most room in Austin
Buyer sites per contractor is a rough read on how crowded a trade is: more sites for each local competitor means more doors nobody else is knocking on. Each trade's Austin figure is ranked against the other markets we track.
| Trade | Rank among markets | Sites per contractor | Contractors | 1-yr change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commercial LandscapingMost room | #9 of 100 | 6.0 | 581 | +4 |
| Commercial Painting & Coatings | #11 of 86 | 95 | 34 | +1 |
| Commercial Cleaning & Janitorial | #40 of 100 | 4.1 | 489 | +6 |
| Fire Protection | #49 of 96 | 44 | 87 | +2 |
| Commercial Flooring | #36 of 68 | 66 | 34 | -5 |
| Commercial Roofing | #56 of 89 | 59 | 54 | -1 |
| Commercial Construction | #65 of 100 | 3.7 | 427 | +5 |
| Paving & Asphalt | #62 of 94 | 37 | 91 | +9 |
| Commercial Electrical | #81 of 100 | 7.7 | 309 | -1 |
| Commercial HVAC & Mechanical | #90 of 100 | 6.8 | 262 | -7 |
| Managed Service Providers | #92 of 100 | 1.4 | 2,264 | +23 |
Commercial landscaping (#9), commercial painting & coatings (#11) and commercial cleaning & janitorial (#40) rank best in Austin. For those trades a program can work longer before it calls the same building twice, and fewer competitors have already pitched each owner.
Managed service providers is the most crowded trade here, #92 of 100: 1.4 buyer sites for each of 2,264 local managed service providers. Winning there takes a sharper reason to switch than a lower price.
Commercial HVAC & mechanical (-7) and commercial flooring (-5) lost contractor establishments over the past year, so the same buildings are split among fewer firms than a year ago. Managed service providers (+23) and paving & asphalt (+9) added them.
Open programs
Our availability workbook does not cover Austin yet. We take one client per trade per territory, so ask before you plan around it.
Chapter 03 The projects
What is being built, and who owns the buildings
5 named, sourced projects and 7 anchor owners in Austin-Round Rock. Each one is a reason to call that has nothing to do with your company and everything to do with the buyer's building.
The projects
- 01 · Over $5 billion Austin-Bergstrom International Airport expansion Under way; Concourse M as soon as 2027, Concourse B early 2030s A program adding 32 gates at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Southeast Austin, including the $1 billion, 26-gate Concourse B linked by an underground walkway to the Barbara Jordan Terminal and a six-gate Concourse M, with the South Terminal closing in spring 2026 for demolition. Demolition of the South Terminal and new taxiways put paving and site work first, followed by two concourse builds with roofing, mechanical, electrical and fire protection scopes into the 2030s. Airline leases signed in January 2026 secured the funding. KUT News, 2026-01-07
- 02 · $1.6 billion Austin Convention Center redevelopment Under construction, reopening spring 2029 A rebuild of the downtown Austin Convention Center, demolished in 2025, that will nearly double its rentable space; a Travis County judge upheld the hotel-tax funding plan in June 2026. With demolition finished and legal challenges cleared, the job moves through structure into large mechanical, electrical and fire protection packages, then flooring and paint across exhibit halls and meeting rooms before 2029. A venue this size also carries long-term cleaning contracts once open. KUT News, 2026-06-18
- 03 · $230 million Ascension Seton Williamson patient tower expansion Opened 2026 A six-story, 216,000 sq ft patient tower at Ascension Seton Williamson in Round Rock, Williamson County, that opened September 1, 2026 with 96 beds online and room for 160. The tower opened with 64 beds of shell capacity still to be built out, which means future interior fit-out work for mechanical, electrical, flooring and paint crews. The added space also expands the hospital's cleaning and building service needs now. Community Impact, 2026-08-21
- 04 · $2.5 billion KDC data center campus, Taylor Annexation and zoning approved March 2026 A data center campus of at least six large buildings on 220 acres northeast of Samsung's chip plant in Taylor, Williamson County, proposed by Dallas-based developer KDC. City documents project about 3,000 construction jobs over three and a half years, with electrical infrastructure, cooling and fire protection as the core building scopes plus site work for detention ponds and a dedicated right of way. Austin American-Statesman, 2026-03-27
- 05 ACC Hays Campus Healthcare Professions Building Broke ground September 22, 2026 A new building at Austin Community College's Hays Campus in Kyle, Hays County, for nursing, dental hygiene, sonography, surgical technology and radiological technology programs, funded by ACC's 2022 bond. Simulation and clinical lab spaces need detailed mechanical, electrical and plumbing coordination, then durable flooring and paint, and a building for 900 to 1,000 students adds a custodial contract once open. Community Impact, 2026-09-22
Projects current as of 2026-09; each source is linked on its card. Values are as reported by the source.
The anchor owners
Health systems, campuses, large employers and industrial parks hold the biggest concentrations of commercial buildings in Austin-Round Rock. One relationship with a facilities team here can cover many buildings.
Health system · Austin, Travis County
Ascension Seton
Ascension says Ascension Seton runs 12 hospitals and 13 ERs in Central Texas, with 4,200+ providers at over 200 sites of care.
Hospitals, emergency rooms and clinic sites spread across the metro each carry mechanical, life-safety, flooring and cleaning work.
AscensionHealth system · Austin, Travis County
St. David's HealthCare
St. David's HealthCare says it is the fourth-largest private employer in the Austin area, with more than 10,600 colleagues across more than 160 healthcare sites.
More than 160 hospital, surgery and clinic sites means a large spread of roofs, rooftop units, parking lots and interiors to service.
St. David's HealthCareCampus · Austin, Travis County
The University of Texas at Austin
UT Austin reports enrollment of 55,172 for Fall 2026 and 441 acres on its main campus.
A 441-acre main campus of classrooms, labs, residence halls and athletic venues runs year-round mechanical, electrical, cleaning and grounds work.
The University of Texas at AustinMajor employer · Unincorporated Travis County, outside Austin
Tesla Gigafactory Texas
Wikipedia, citing the Austin Business Journal, lists 10,000,000 sq ft of floor area for the factory, which also serves as the site of Tesla's corporate headquarters.
A vehicle plant and headquarters of this size runs heavy electrical, mechanical, fire protection and paved-lot needs on one site off SH 130.
WikipediaPublic owner · Austin, Travis County
State of Texas (Capitol Complex and state agencies)
Wikipedia's table of Austin's top employers, citing the city's financial report, lists State Government first with 40,460 employees in 2024.
State agencies occupy office buildings, the Capitol Complex and parking structures across central Austin that need janitorial, mechanical, electrical and painting work.
WikipediaAirport · Austin, Travis County
Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS)
The City of Austin says AUS serves approximately 20 million passengers a year and served 1,804,578 departing and arriving passengers in August 2026.
Terminal, concessions, parking garages and airfield-side buildings need constant cleaning, HVAC service, electrical and pavement work.
City of Austin, Austin-Bergstrom International AirportIndustrial park · Hutto, Williamson County
Hutto Megasite
The Williamson County Economic Development Partnership describes the megasite as an assemblage of 1,400 city and privately owned acres, with an $18 million spine road completed to open it to industrial development.
Data center campuses, industrial buildings and flex space going up along US 79 bring site work, paving, electrical and new-building trades into one corridor.
Williamson County Economic Development PartnershipAnchor facts checked 2026-10; each source is linked on its card.
Which trades the work touches
| Trade | Projects and owners |
|---|---|
| Commercial Electrical | 11 |
| Commercial HVAC & Mechanical | 11 |
| Commercial Cleaning & Janitorial | 9 |
| Fire Protection | 6 |
| Paving & Asphalt | 6 |
| Commercial Flooring | 4 |
| Commercial Roofing | 4 |
| Commercial Painting & Coatings | 2 |
| Commercial Construction | 2 |
| Commercial Landscaping | 1 |
Chapter 04 The calendar
The Austin selling calendar
Outbound runs every month, but the weather changes what a buyer wants to hear. These are the NOAA records for the Austin-Round Rock metro's counties, month by month.
| Measure | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail and damaging wind reportstotal, 2015 to 2024 | 6 | 5 | 51 | 188 | 155 | 62 | 11 | 4 | 68 | 19 | 1 | 2 |
| Cooling degree daysaverage month | 13 | 20 | 70 | 132 | 323 | 496 | 596 | 608 | 414 | 176 | 42 | 7 |
| Heating degree daysaverage month | 464 | 315 | 187 | 48 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 33 | 210 | 414 |
| Average high (°F)average month | 62 | 66 | 72 | 80 | 86 | 92 | 95 | 97 | 90 | 82 | 71 | 63 |
NOAA logged 325 hail reports of 1 inch or larger and 247 damaging wind reports across the metro's counties from 2015 to 2024: #15 of 100 markets for hail and #56 for wind. April, May and September carried 72% of the reports. Storm calls are a real door-opener here, and the contractor who is already known before the season gets the inspection.
The metro averages 2,895 cooling degree days a year (#15 of 97 markets) and 1,673 heating degree days (#83 of 97). Cooling load peaks in May, June, July, August and September; heating in January, February and December. Peak months are when HVAC calls lead with service and response times; the rest of the year they lead with planned work and budgets.
Every month averages a high of 60°F or more, so exterior painting, paving and landscaping work is not squeezed into a short season here. The calendar that matters is each property's contract and budget date.
Trades with no weather season
Cleaning, construction, electrical, flooring and fire protection sell on contract end dates, budgets and inspection cycles. Learn each account's date on the first call and come back before it.
Roofing demand spikes after hail and wind events, when owners want an inspection and documentation for their insurer, so be the known contractor before the storm, not one of many calling after it. Planned work follows each owner's budget: inspections feed capital requests, and replacements are approved ahead of installation. Outbound runs every month, keyed to each building's roof age and budget date.
Chapter 05 The numbers
What one meeting takes, trade by trade
What booking a meeting has taken on our own calling floor for the trades we run in Austin, next to the records we can prospect here. The sales center figures are national; it does not break them out by city yet.
| Trade | Dials per appointment | Reached proposal | Proposals won | Dials for 10 meetings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fire ProtectionFastest to book | 78 | 21.6% | 13.2% | about 780 |
| Paving & Asphalt | 86 | 32.2% | 7.4% | about 860 |
| Commercial Landscaping | 88 | 18.8% | 12.7% | about 880 |
| Commercial Electrical | 96 | 14.6% | 21.1% | about 960 |
| Commercial HVAC & Mechanical | 98 | 16.6% | 24.9% | about 980 |
| Commercial Painting & Coatings | 115 | 31.2% | 14.4% | about 1,150 |
| Commercial Flooring | 122 | 30.8% | 9.8% | about 1,220 |
| Commercial Roofing | 140 | 25.9% | 16.1% | about 1,400 |
| Commercial Cleaning & Janitorial | 142 | 23.9% | 21.7% | about 1,420 |
| Managed Service Providers | 162 | 10.0% | 20.5% | about 1,620 |
All of these trades together: 122 dials per appointment
The records behind a Austin program
Before a program starts we size the list: the decision-maker records Abstrakt can prospect for each trade in the Austin-Round Rock territory.
- 5,138Commercial Roofing
- 5,138Commercial Construction
- 1,856Commercial HVAC & Mechanical
- 1,300Commercial Cleaning & Janitorial
Source: Abstrakt territory record counts, as of October 2026: estimated decision-maker records Abstrakt can prospect for each program in the territory. Shown for the programs the count covers.
Read it this way
Divide the records by the dials one meeting takes and you see how long a list lasts before it repeats. A thin list means a program has to work every record well, not just call more.
Chapter 06 Build or buy
What an in-house SDR costs in Austin
Before you hire a sales development rep in Austin, price the whole job, not just the salary.
The salary is the smallest part of the decision. About 16,700 people hold the role in the Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX metro, and every one of their employers is competing for the same hires.
| Cost | Year one |
|---|---|
| Base salary | $55,000 |
| Commission and bonus | $15,000 |
| Payroll taxes and benefits (25% of pay) | $17,500 |
| Tools and data ($550 a month) | $6,600 |
| Recruiting and training | $7,000 |
| Turnover (35% a year, rehiring) | $2,450 |
| Manager and QA time (5 hours a week) and admin (4 hours a month) | $21,150 |
| Total, before ramp time | $124,700 |
Headcount: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025. Sales representatives of services, except advertising, insurance, financial services and travel (SOC 41-3091). The cost lines are the starting values of our SDR cost calculator: $15,000 commission, 25% payroll taxes and benefits, $550 a month in tools, $7,000 recruiting and training, 35% yearly turnover, and manager, QA and admin time. Change any of them there.
$124,700
for one in-house SDR's first year at a $55,000 base salary.
That buys one rep. It does not buy the list, the manager's coaching system or cover when the rep leaves.
Part two Apply this
The Austin market toolkit
4 working tools built from the chapters above. Tick the boxes as you go (they stay ticked in this browser), copy the scripts into your CRM, or save the whole guide as a PDF and print this part as a worksheet.
Tool 01
Account scorecard
Before an account goes on the call list, check every line that fits. Call the accounts with the most ticks first, and leave the ones with none for later.
Tool 02
Discovery question bank
Ask fewer, better questions. Pick three or four for the call and save the rest for the meeting. Each one comes with the reason it earns its place.
Restaurants: 2,023 sites here
From our fire protection talk track. Staying open and passing inspection. Multi-unit operators are worth more than single locations.
- When was your hood suppression system last inspected, and when is the next one due?Due dates tell you when to call and what to offer.
- Have you had a failed inspection or a citation recently?Failed inspections threaten the ability to stay open and create urgency.
- How many locations do you operate, and does each one use a different vendor?Multi-unit operators are more valuable and often want one vendor across locations.
Retail stores: 1,184 sites here
From our painting talk track. Night work that does not close the store. Chains often run repaints as multi-site programs from regional facilities.
- Is painting bought store by store or through a regional or national remodel program?Program work needs a different contact and often a vendor registration process.
- Can the work be done overnight without closing the store?Night work capability is often the deciding factor for retail painting.
- Are remodels, brand refreshes or new stores planned in this area?Planned programs give you a timeline and a defined scope.
Medical, dental and outpatient offices: 616 sites here
From our landscaping talk track. Patient access and safety. Many practices lease, so the landlord or property manager is often the buyer.
- Do you own the building, or does a landlord or property manager handle the grounds?Many practices lease, so this tells you whether to keep selling here or move to the landlord.
- Have patients complained about the entrance, parking or grounds?Complaints give the practice administrator a reason to push for a change.
- When does the current grounds contract end?The date sets your follow-up timing.
Any first meeting
Plain practice that works in every market.
- How are you handling this today, and what would you change about it?The gap between today and what they want is the whole reason to meet.
- What happens if nothing changes this year?Tells you whether there is a cost to waiting, or only curiosity.
- Who else would need to agree before anything moves?Names the people who can stall the deal, while you can still invite them.
- When does the current contract or budget come up for review?Gives you the date to plan around, even when the answer today is no.
- What would make a first meeting worth your time?Lets the buyer set the agenda, which is the agenda they will show up for.
Tool 03
Trigger watchlist
Each of these changes gives a buyer a reason to take the call this month instead of next year. Tick the ones you will track, and set a news alert or CRM field for each so you hear about it first.
Tool 04
30-day action plan
4 weeks, 15 steps, nothing you need to buy. Tick each one off as you finish it; your progress stays in this browser.
Week 1Draw the territory
Week 2Check the rules, then write the talk track
Week 3Make the calls
Week 4Measure and decide
Sources and notes
- U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023: business sites by category, size and county, Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, private ownership, 2026 Q1: contractor establishments, one-year change and concentration (location quotient).
- Projects: named public sources linked on each card, current as of 2026-09.
- Anchor owners: sources linked on each card, checked 2026-10.
- NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 2015 to 2024: hail and damaging wind reports by month across the metro's counties.
- NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county monthly series, 1991-2020 averages: degree days and average highs by month.
- Abstrakt sales center, Performance Intelligence, national, as of October 2026: dials, appointments, proposals and wins by trade. Method.
- Abstrakt territory record counts, as of October 2026: decision-maker records per program in the Austin-Round Rock territory.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025: Sales representatives of services, except advertising, insurance, financial services and travel (SOC 41-3091).
- The toolkit's discovery questions come from our trade talk tracks; the plan and checklists are sales practice, not data.
