E-Newsletter
An Electronic Publication of the North Central Massachusetts Chamber of Commerce
Inside this edition, you’ll discover the latest Chamber initiatives and success stories from across our region. From economic development projects and upcoming networking events to policy updates and workforce training opportunities, we’re keeping you connected to what matters most for your business and North Central Massachusetts.
The North Central Massachusetts Chamber of Commerce is here to help – with trusted resources, a strong business network, and a support system to keep your business and the region moving forward
You’ve probably heard that content is king multiple times already, and you’re almost getting tired of hearing it. But with consumer demand for custom content continually increasing, you must get your content in order if you want to reap the right benefit. Statistics from SEMrush show that more than 80% of companies have a content marketing strategy. Moreover, most of your site visitors only end up there after looking at some specific details they need. Therefore, you have to get your content marketing right to boost your traffic and increase conversions.
Unfortunately, even with content marketing being a critical aspect in any enterprise, research shows that only 32% of marketers consider themselves effective at it. We have come up with four critical things in content marketing that will help you improve your strategy. Keep reading for more insights.
Content marketing isn’t just about writing and doing more writing and waiting for the desired results. You’ll have to take your time and think about what your content strategy should be before you write your first post. Also, you have to know your target audience, the message that will resonate with them, and the added value of your products or services. If you don’t know who you want to attract to your site and what they expect from you, there are fewer chances of turning your traffic into conversions.
About 89% of marketers used blog posts as part of their content marketing strategy in 2020 to build more brand awareness. However, if you think that having a blog and updating it from time to time will deliver success in your content marketing strategy, think again. You have to be consistent in blogging to increase traffic to your website. Your audience love to go through interesting blogs and active ones too. Post to your blog at least 16 times a month while still maintaining the highest quality in each piece for better results. Besides, this is a clever way of showing your audience that your company is active since you’ll always have something to show and tell your clients.
We can all agree that technology and the internet keep evolving at a very high rate. Also, today’s audience, especially the young generation, keeps switching from one platform to another. You will find that millennials love Instagram, salespeople like LinkedIn, and we know that most of our Chamber members are active users of Facebook and/or Twitter. Therefore, you need to do in-depth research to understand your target audience to have an effective content marketing strategy. When you have the right information about your target audience, you will know the social media platform to focus on when creating content.
Contrary to what social media experts might tell you, there is a single platform that is best for your content: your blog. Google will crawl and index your content more frequently if you have a blog and use it to post your most timely content. After posting your content to your blog, post to your social sites as outposts that engage your audience and lead to better relationships.
Content marketing isn’t a one-time thing or something you can do once a week or a month. This is especially true when you are sharing your content on social media. You will need to constantly supervise your content, even past the usual working hours and during the weekends. This is because you don’t want a negative comment attracting many eyes, especially those who haven’t used your products or services. Also, keeping in mind that your site is accessible from any part of the globe, you don’t know when someone will read your post.
Marketing experts say content marketing is a core factor of any good marketing strategy. By taking into account the above details, you will see significant improvements in your content marketing plan. Don’t just embrace it because every marketer does it but do it right to get the right outcomes.
North Central Massachusetts One of Seven Regions Selected to Increase Access to High-Quality Credentials for Adults of Color
The North Central Massachusetts Chamber of Commerce is one of seven organizations selected by the Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives (ACCE) to participate in the ACCE’s Equitable Credential Attainment Cohort program, an 18-month program to help strengthen chamber of commerce partnerships with community colleges and community organizations to increase the number of adult learners of color who earn an industry-relevant credential or degree. The ACCE Foundation (ACCEF) and American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) identified a virtual cohort of teams from seven cities or regions across the U.S., with each team comprised of a chamber, a community college partner and an organization that directly represents minority communities.
The North Central Massachusetts Chamber of Commerce will team up with Mount Wachusett Community College and the Spanish American Center. Together, the team will identify and break down the barriers for adult learners of color to significantly increase the number of those completing high-quality, relevant short-term credentials and degrees in the region.
As one of six other regions across the U.S. selected for the program, the North Central Massachusetts team will attend monthly, virtual meetings to learn from national subject matter experts, obtain customized technical assistance, and engage in peer-to-peer learning activities to create a strategy for longer-term collaboration to build momentum after the grant period ends.
“This is a great opportunity for our region to contribute to the national dialogue related to upskilling and the resources that are being reallocated to fund short-term credentials,” said Roy M. Nascimento, President and CEO, North Central Massachusetts Chamber of Commerce. “By teaming up with Mount Wachusett Community College and the Spanish American Center, we will identify how best to support our region’s adult learners of color by utilizing the knowledge and best practices proven in other areas across the country to ensure success of the program to help us make an impact for those who live in North Central Massachusetts.”
“Mount Wachusett Community College has a strong and long-standing partnership with the North Central Massachusetts Chamber of Commerce as well as the Spanish American Center,” said Jim Vander Hooven, President, Mount Wachusett Community College. “We are fortunate to have such an engaged and forward-thinking Chamber in our region. We look forward to contributing to the success of the Equitable Credential Attainment cohort program and to ensuring the workforce and economic health of our region,” added Vander Hooven.
“The Spanish America Center is continuously assessing the needs of our community and adjusting the services we provide in order to best meet these needs, one of which is supporting the career aspirations for those we serve,” said Neddy Latimer, Executive Director, Spanish American Center. “By partnering with the North Central Massachusetts Chamber of Commerce and Mount Wachusett Community College, we will be able to enhance our commitment of advancing the community by ensuring that all those who seek an industry-relevant credential or degree will have the opportunity to do so.”
To support the development of these partnerships, and to increase the number of workers with in-demand credentials and degrees, Lumina Foundation has provided a grant to jumpstart progress.
“We are grateful for Lumina Foundation’s continued support for the catalytic leadership chambers of commerce provide in the communities they serve,” said ACCE President & CEO Sheree Anne Kelly. “Strong cross-sector partnerships are crucial to addressing workforce challenges, building resilient local economies and creating opportunities for everyone to thrive.”
The other communities participating in the program include Aurora, Illinois; Chattanooga, Tennessee; Cleveland, Ohio; Des Moines, Iowa; Fargo, North Dakota; and Tallahassee, Florida.
For businesses and consumers across New England, almost everything is more expensive right now and that dynamic has wide-reaching ripple effects that turn up in reports the Federal Reserve compiles from banking and business contacts.
“Retailers raised their prices somewhat in recent months in response to rising input costs and robust demand, although one experienced some consumer pushback after its latest price move,” the Fed wrote in the latest Beige Book, which summarizes recent business activity in New England and around the country.
For the companies that manufacture goods, there have been “intense input pricing pressures, with increases as high as 30 percent over the year,” especially for materials like foam, steel, aluminum, wood, cornstarch, adhesives and cardboard, the Fed reported. Some New England manufacturers have significantly raised the prices of their final goods to compensate, but the Fed said at least one of its sources “said it was trying not to raise prices.”
Down the line, retailers selling those goods are facing freight and shipping costs that have “stabilized at very high levels” and contributed further to moderately higher prices for consumers, but reports from retail contacts were “mostly positive” in the last month, the Fed said.
“A clothing retailer enjoyed a robust seasonal surge in sales above its already-strong performance in the first 3 quarters of the year, as recent sales exceeded comparable 2020 levels by low double-digit percentages,” the Beige Book’s New England report said. “A furniture seller saw revenue above pre-pandemic levels, but its sales volume dropped in recent months relative to the record-setting levels posted in the summer of 2021.”
That prices have been rising comes as no surprise to consumers. The pocketbook pressure was quantified Wednesday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which reported that the U.S. Consumer Price Index increased 7 percent over the last year — the steepest climb in prices since 1982.
White House officials said Wednesday that inflation is “still too high, but moving in the right direction,” citing a month-to-month deceleration.
“I would note that we saw, in prices from November to December, a decline in the rate of growth of the prices for food at home, which is a technical way of saying food that people buy in the grocery store. And we saw a drop in the price of energy, both at the gas pump but also natural gas and winter heating costs,” National Economic Council Director Brian Deese said, according to a White House transcript. “And many of you focused on the annual 7 percent rate. If we are trying to look at where we are headed, the month-to-month changes are more instructive.”
On Thursday, Council of Economic Advisers Chair Cecilia Rouse highlighted that a separate measure, the Producer Price Index showed “a slowdown in producer price increases in December, relative to the month before, and the lowest monthly increase … since November 2020.”
A tight labor market has contributed to the stress on businesses and consumers, though an economics and policy researcher told Massachusetts officials Wednesday that the jobs picture here has “improved significantly over the last year and a half to two years” but remains about 172,400 jobs short of pre-pandemic highs.
“We’re still below peak on our 2020 job numbers, but we’re approaching that and hopefully we would see full recovery at least later this year or early in 2023,” Mark Melnik, the UMass Donahue Institute’s director of economic and public policy research, said during an economic overview hosted by MassEcon.
The Fed largely backed up Melnik in the Beige Book, saying that a few of the firms it contacted “described moderate-to-aggressive hiring plans” for 2022, though at least one said it intended to shed workers this year.
Despite concerns that they would lead to a mass exodus from the workforce, the Fed said it has seen no evidence that vaccine mandates led to more people quitting their jobs in New England.
“Three contacts from diverse sectors said that it had recently become easier to hire workers, while others reported that hiring remained difficult but had not deteriorated. Elevated turnover remained a problem for several firms, but one noted that vaccine mandates had not resulted in increased quits. Wages posted strong gains on average, with year-over-year raises ranging from only slight to a robust 10 percent.”
Colleagues recognized for bringing Fidelity Bank mission, values to clients
Fidelity Bank announced it has recognized the following employees at its All-Hearts Meeting, the annual employee recognition meeting, held at Wachusett Mountain. Employees were recognized for bringing the Fidelity Bank values to clients and helping them get where they want to be.
Nancy Fioretti, Commercial Lending Assistant, received the 2022 Back Office Mission Accomplished Award. A resident of Leominster, Fioretti has been with Fidelity Bank for 15 years and was recognized for her work during the pandemic to ensure the Commercial team was able to function as business-as-usual during a very unusual time to ensure clients could have the clarity to move forward with confidence.
Tanya Quinn, Vice President, Digital Manager, received the 2022 Client-Facing Mission Accomplished Award. A resident of Athol, Quinn was recognized for her work throughout the bank’s digital transformation and traditional growth efforts while providing every aspect of the C.A.R.E. process to help clients meet their needs.
“Our Mission Accomplished Awards recognize those colleagues who lead by example in executing our LifeDesign approach to banking,” said Ed Manzi, Jr., Chairman and CEO, Fidelity Bank. “Nancy and Tanya bring our commitment of care, clarity and confidence to their colleagues and our clients alike with poise, professionalism, and positivity, which make them both worthy of this recognition.”
In addition to the Mission Accomplished Awards, colleagues were also recognized with Role Model Awards for representing the bank’s values of excellence, care, humility, integrity and positivity.
Amanda Prokowiew, Systems Analyst, received the Excellence Award. A resident of Leominster, Prokowiew has been with Fidelity Bank for 11 years and was recognized for embracing challenges and change with relentless commitment to precision and getting things done right the first time.
Terrence O’Kane, Human Resources Manager, received the bank’s Care Award. A resident of Shrewsbury, O’Kane has been with the bank for nearly seven years and was recognized for being thoughtful, responsive and caring for the concern of others and treating people the way they should be treated.
Marissa Vescovi, Loan Servicing Supervisor, received the Humility Award. A resident of Orange, she has been with the bank for seven years and was recognized for assistance with the development and training of the residential loan servicing team, and for implementing various process improvement initiatives.
Brett Finnell, Cash Management Implementation Support Specialist, received the Integrity Award. A resident of Leominster, he has been with the bank for six years and was recognized for his exceptional professional and ethical standards.
Amber McCreadie, Vice President, Area Manager, received the Positivity Award. A resident of Barre, she has been with the bank for six years and was recognized for her consistent positive attitude and outlook regardless of the challenges and opportunities that come her way.
“Our Role Model Awards are for those colleagues who continuously set an example by personifying Fidelity Bank’s guiding values and commitment to our LifeDesign Banking approach,” said Dee Sendrowski, Senior Vice President, Human Resources Director. “This year’s award recipients work across a variety of roles and place service above all else.”

“I am excited to welcome Tricia to the Board,” noted MWCC President James Vander Hooven. “I have worked closely with her over the last few years. She has been a committed liaison between her organization and our medical and health-related programs.”
Pistone joined UMass Memorial Health – Health Alliance – Clinton Hospital in April 2021, after a fourteen-year career in leadership roles at Making Opportunity Count, Inc. (MOC) in Fitchburg. Her history with MWCC dates to her time as Economic Development Director for Congressman John Olver, who was integral in sustaining grant funding for the construction of the colleges’ wind turbines.
“I am honored to join MWCC’s Board of Trustees,” stated Pistone. “I have had the privilege to work with MWCC in various capacities throughout my career and have always held the college in the highest regard as both an institution for higher education institution as well as an anchor organization in our region. I look forward to working closely with the Administration and Board of Trustees to continue that strong legacy into the future.”
“Ms. Pistone has been a great supporter of the college through her career, and it is a pleasure to have her with us,” stated Chairman of the Board of Trustees Robert Antonioni.
In addition to Chairman Antonioni, Pistone joins MWCC alumna Irene Hernandez Guzman, Leominster City Councilor Clair M. Freda, Weston Public Schools Director of Health Services Jamy Gaynor, Professor Emerita, Western New England University, Denise Kindschi Gosselin, CEO of GAAMHA, Inc. Tracy L. Hutchinson, President and CEO of Workers Credit Union Douglas Petersen, ACT, Inc. President Kenneth Tomasetti, and student trustee Cody Nathanson.
Mount Wachusett Community College, in collaboration with the Massachusetts Army National Guard, is launching a bridge program for eligible service members and veterans to earn and maintain their National Registry of Emergency Medical Technician (NREMT) certification.
The program enables US Army Combat Medics to earn credit for their military training and experience, smoothing the transition to the civilian workforce while enhancing career opportunities for Reserve Component members.
“It gives us tremendous pride to offer this program to our service members,” stated MWCC President James Vander Hooven. “The Mount is a leader in both veteran services and preparing first responders and healthcare professionals, and this program is a natural fit for our college and community.
“The gap between military training and college education can sometimes be enormous. That’s probably why there are so few programs like this,” notes Robert Mayer, Director of Veteran Services at MWCC. “I’m thrilled that a way of bridging that gap has been worked out here at MWCC. I am optimistic that this could be a first step in narrowing that gap for many in our transitioning military population.”
Military medic to paramedic programs were first established in 2017 in Michigan. MWCC is one of only a handful of higher education institutions to offer this bridge program. The MWCC Paramedic Technology program was launched in 2018 and has since seen a 100% employment rate for graduates.
When the workday ends and the lights go down, Custom Cleaning Service of Peabody, Inc. gets to work. “We operate as our clients’ silent partner after business hours,” says Adam Paicos, of Templeton, who now serves as Director of Operations and oversees the company’s expansion into North Central MA. “We are not often seen, but we ensure facilities are clean, secure, and ready for business each day while serving as the eyes and ears for our clients when they are not on site.”
Discover local business stories through our Inside North Central Massachusetts Podcast series. Listen as Chamber members share their journeys, insights, and contributions to our thriving regional business community.
Looking for your next opportunity? Explore current job openings from employers across North Central Massachusetts on our Jobs Board. Whether you’re starting a new career or making a change, you’ll find a variety of local positions available to help you take the next step.
CapEx Facility Services & Construction · Leominster, MA
TaraVista Behavioral Health Center · Harvard, MA
DRS Power Technology, Inc. · Fitchburg, MA
AIS · Leominster, MA