Market report · Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA
The State of Outbound Sales in Seattle, 2026
How outbound selling looks across the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA 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.
- 8,607business sites with 20+ people across the categories trades sell to, #16 of our 100 metros
- 15buyer sites per mechanical contractor, #6 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 Seattle
Biggest buyer pool
Restaurants: 2,462 sites
with 20 or more people, the largest buyer category in Seattle-Tacoma, ahead of retail stores (1,815).
Where the metro leans
Senior living and nursing: 2.00x the U.S. mix
Also over-represented: restaurants (1.29x) and apartment and residential property managers (1.27x). Trades that serve these buyers have more of them here than the national average suggests.
Most room
Commercial HVAC & Mechanical: #6 of 100 markets
15 buyer sites with 20+ people for each of 208 local mechanical contractors. The most crowded is managed service providers, #100 of 100.
Biggest reason to call
UW Medical Center Montlake 4NN/4EE Acute Care Expansion, $35.5 million
GC/CM procurement (proposals due October 9, 2026). One of 6 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 Seattle-Tacoma
8,607 business sites in Seattle-Tacoma have 20 or more people on site in the categories commercial trades sell to. That ranks #16 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 | 2,462 | 9,761 | 1.29x | +108 |
| Retail stores | 1,815 | 10,161 | 0.88x | -145 |
| Medical, dental and outpatient offices | 948 | 8,705 | 0.91x | +96 |
| Manufacturing plants | 900 | 3,154 | 0.96x | -85 |
| Wholesale distributors | 862 | 4,679 | 1.12x | -256 |
| Grocery stores | 403 | 1,570 | 0.95x | -18 |
| Senior living and nursing | 371 | 1,688 | 2.00x | +125 |
| Hotels | 224 | 468 | 0.72x | +2 |
| Trucking companies | 179 | 1,834 | 0.55x | -44 |
| Auto dealerships | 177 | 454 | 0.84x | -3 |
Seattle-Tacoma leans toward senior living and nursing (2.00x), restaurants (1.29x) and apartment and residential property managers (1.27x). 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 hospitals (0.44x) and churches and religious organizations (0.52x). A program built around those buyers runs out of fresh accounts sooner here.
Growing fastest over the past year, by establishment count: senior living and nursing (+125), restaurants (+108) and medical, dental and outpatient offices (+96). New sites have no incumbent vendor yet.
The metro
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA: 3 counties in this report's counts.
King County holds 62% of the larger business sites, so most programs start there.
Where the sites are
| County | Sites with 20+ | Share of metro |
|---|---|---|
| King CountyStart here | 5,359 | 62% |
| Pierce County | 1,666 | 19% |
| Snohomish County | 1,511 | 18% |
Chapter 02 The competition
Which trades have the most room in Seattle
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 Seattle figure is ranked against the other markets we track.
| Trade | Rank among markets | Sites per contractor | Contractors | 1-yr change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commercial HVAC & MechanicalMost room | #6 of 100 | 15 | 208 | +8 |
| Commercial Flooring | #6 of 68 | 124 | 29 | -2 |
| Commercial Construction | #19 of 100 | 6.5 | 426 | -11 |
| Commercial Roofing | #17 of 89 | 88 | 58 | +4 |
| Commercial Electrical | #21 of 100 | 13 | 323 | -2 |
| Paving & Asphalt | #23 of 94 | 51 | 103 | +7 |
| Fire Protection | #47 of 96 | 45 | 125 | -3 |
| Commercial Painting & Coatings | #46 of 86 | 66 | 81 | -7 |
| Commercial Landscaping | #58 of 100 | 3.5 | 1,543 | -51 |
| Commercial Cleaning & Janitorial | #83 of 100 | 3.0 | 1,169 | +1 |
| Managed Service Providers | #100 of 100 | 0.8 | 7,028 | -63 |
Commercial HVAC & mechanical (#6), commercial flooring (#6) and commercial construction (#19) rank best in Seattle. 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, #100 of 100: 0.8 buyer sites for each of 7,028 local managed service providers. Winning there takes a sharper reason to switch than a lower price.
Managed service providers (-63) and commercial landscaping (-51) lost contractor establishments over the past year, so the same buildings are split among fewer firms than a year ago. Commercial HVAC & mechanical (+8) and paving & asphalt (+7) added them.
Open programs
Our availability workbook does not cover Seattle 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
6 named, sourced projects and 7 anchor owners in Seattle-Tacoma. 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 · $35.5 million UW Medical Center Montlake 4NN/4EE Acute Care Expansion GC/CM procurement (proposals due October 9, 2026) Conversion of 18,500 sq ft on the fourth floor of Pacific Tower at UW Medical Center's Montlake campus in Seattle from administrative space back into about 24 medical/surgical acute care beds. Turning offices into patient rooms means new medical gas, HVAC and electrical work in an occupied hospital, plus fire protection modifications, healthcare-grade flooring and painting. Washington APEX Accelerator (University of Washington RFP notice), 2026-09-09
- 02 · $93,811,402 UW Bothell Husky Hall Replacement Progressive design-build procurement (qualifications due October 13, 2026) Replacement of the single-story, 30,000 sq ft Husky Hall at UW Bothell with a three-to-four-story, roughly 69,000 sq ft academic building including a 300 to 500 person multipurpose hall. A new academic building brings mechanical, electrical, roofing and fire protection packages once the design-builder is selected, then flooring, painting and custodial contracts at opening. Washington APEX Accelerator (University of Washington RFQ notice), 2026-09-22
- 03 · $20 million over three years Harborview Bond Program: Pioneer Square Clinic (Duncan Building) Solicitation anticipated Q3 2026 Seismic upgrades, building improvements and tenant work to turn the Duncan Building in Seattle's Pioneer Square into a new Harborview clinic, part of King County's voter-approved Harborview bond program. The county is soliciting architectural, mechanical, electrical, plumbing, masonry and structural steel services, so mechanical and electrical subs and interior finish trades should track this release. Washington APEX Accelerator (King County forecast), 2026-06-08
- 04 · $45 million Delong Elementary School Replacement Progressive design-build RFQ issued September 2026 Tacoma Public Schools plans to replace its 1953 Delong Elementary at 4901 S. 14th St. in Central Tacoma with a new 45,000 sq ft school for about 420 students. School replacements bundle demolition, roofing, mechanical and electrical work with site paving and landscaping, and the new building creates a long-term custodial and grounds contract. Seattle Daily Journal of Commerce, 2026-09-28
- 05 · $23M Seattle Center Monorail Station Modernization Under construction (started September 2026) A renovation of the Seattle Center monorail station to make it fully accessible, including a new ramp from Thomas Street and added passenger capacity. Transit station renovations call for electrical and lighting upgrades, new finishes and painting, and concrete and paving work at the new ramp connection. Seattle Daily Journal of Commerce, 2026-09-30
- 06 Sound Transit Stride S3 bus rapid transit line (NE 145th Street) Under construction Roadway widening, utility work, a water retention vault, sidewalks and station construction along Northeast 145th Street on the Seattle and Shoreline border for Sound Transit's Stride S3 line. BRT corridors generate paving, sidewalk and station electrical work during construction, and finished stations add landscaping and cleaning maintenance needs. Seattle Daily Journal of Commerce, 2026-09-24
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 Seattle-Tacoma. One relationship with a facilities team here can cover many buildings.
Health system · Seattle, King County (plus Edmonds, Snohomish County, and Issaquah, King County)
Swedish Medical Center
Swedish calls itself the largest not-for-profit health care provider in the greater Seattle area, with five hospital campuses and 142 primary and specialty care locations.
Five hospital campuses (First Hill, Cherry Hill, Ballard, Edmonds and Issaquah) plus clinics across the Sound each run mechanical, life-safety and cleaning programs.
SwedishCampus · Seattle, King County
University of Washington
UW Fast Facts list 52,316 students at the Seattle campus, with 6,361 at Bothell and 5,059 at Tacoma.
Three campuses with labs, residence halls, athletic venues and large grounds need constant mechanical, cleaning and landscaping work.
University of WashingtonMajor employer · Everett, Snohomish County
Boeing Everett Factory
The Everett factory holds the Guinness World Record as the world's largest building by volume at 472 million cubic feet, with a factory floor spanning 98.3 acres.
A wide-body assembly site of this size carries large electrical, roofing, coatings and fire protection scopes, plus surrounding lots and support buildings.
Airways MagazineAirport · SeaTac, King County
Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA)
The Port of Seattle says SEA set a record with over 52.7 million passengers in 2025.
Terminals, parking garage and airfield facilities owned by the Port of Seattle carry ongoing cleaning, HVAC, electrical and pavement work.
Port of SeattleLogistics hub · Seattle, King County, and Tacoma, Pierce County
The Northwest Seaport Alliance
The Port of Seattle reports the NWSA handled 3.2 million 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in 2025, down 5.5% from 2024's 3.3 million TEUs.
Container, breakbulk and auto terminals in Seattle and Tacoma run yards, warehouses and gate complexes that need paving, lighting and roofing work.
Port of SeattleIndustrial park · Kent, King County
Pacific Gateway Business Park
Segale Properties lists 120 acres within Pacific Gateway Business Park with 1,341,484 square feet of total industrial warehouse space.
Multi-tenant warehouse buildings in the Kent Valley share needs for roof maintenance, truck court paving, sprinkler inspection and dock lighting.
Segale PropertiesPublic owner · Pierce County
Joint Base Lewis-McChord
Military OneSource lists 31,001 active military and 13,593 civilians at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.
A large installation with barracks, hangars, offices and support buildings buys facility maintenance and construction through federal contracting.
Military OneSourceAnchor facts checked 2026-10; each source is linked on its card.
Which trades the work touches
| Trade | Projects and owners |
|---|---|
| Commercial Electrical | 13 |
| Commercial HVAC & Mechanical | 8 |
| Paving & Asphalt | 8 |
| Commercial Roofing | 7 |
| Fire Protection | 6 |
| Commercial Painting & Coatings | 4 |
| Commercial Flooring | 3 |
| Commercial Construction | 3 |
| Commercial Landscaping | 3 |
| Commercial Cleaning & Janitorial | 3 |
Chapter 04 The calendar
The Seattle selling calendar
Outbound runs every month, but the weather changes what a buyer wants to hear. These are the NOAA records for the Seattle-Tacoma metro's counties, month by month.
| Measure | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cooling degree daysaverage month | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 29 | 30 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Heating degree daysaverage month | 896 | 777 | 766 | 611 | 436 | 293 | 140 | 125 | 251 | 536 | 755 | 924 |
| Average high (°F)average month | 41 | 44 | 48 | 53 | 60 | 65 | 72 | 73 | 66 | 55 | 45 | 40 |
The metro averages 66 cooling degree days a year (#97 of 97 markets) and 6,509 heating degree days (#18 of 97). Cooling load peaks in July and August; heating in January, February, March, April, October, November 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.
5 months average a high of 60°F or more (May, June, July, August and September). That is when exterior painting, paving and landscaping crews are busiest, so in-season calls catch owners while they can see the work that needs doing. The contracts themselves are bid on each property's own dates, so the selling runs all year.
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.
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 Seattle, 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 Seattle program
Before a program starts we size the list: the decision-maker records Abstrakt can prospect for each trade in the Seattle-Tacoma territory.
- 10,412Commercial Roofing
- 10,412Commercial Construction
- 4,134Commercial HVAC & Mechanical
- 3,063Commercial 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 Seattle
Before you hire a sales development rep in Seattle, price the whole job, not just the salary.
The salary is the smallest part of the decision. About 12,450 people hold the role in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA 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 Seattle 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: 2,462 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: 1,815 sites here
From our roofing talk track. Leaks in front of customers. Qualify early whether the store or the landlord owns the roof.
- Does the store or the landlord own the roof under your lease?This is the first qualifying question, since many retail roofs are the landlord's responsibility.
- Where have leaks hit, the sales floor, the stockroom or around rooftop units?Leak location shows how much they affect customers and inventory, which drives urgency.
- Is a remodel or refresh scheduled for this location?Remodels are when replacement or major repair gets funded and scheduled.
Medical, dental and outpatient offices: 948 sites here
From our HVAC talk track. Patients notice a hot waiting room. Ask how comfort complaints get handled and who owns the equipment, the practice or the landlord.
- Does the practice own the HVAC equipment, or is it the landlord's responsibility under the lease?Ownership tells you whether the buyer is the practice administrator or the property manager, which changes who you meet.
- How many locations does the group run, and is service handled by one contractor or several?Multi-site groups often want one agreement across every office, a bigger first contract than a single suite.
- How do patient and staff comfort complaints get handled today, and how fast?Complaints in clinical spaces are felt immediately, and a slow response is the most common reason a practice will take another call.
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, Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA.
- 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 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 Seattle-Tacoma 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.
