Chaos Managed: How Sheetz Thrives in High Traffic With Lytho

In Brief

Managing creative operations for a fast-growing, high-traffic business like Sheetz is no small feat. With 25 in-house creatives supporting over 200 stakeholders — and more than 670 convenience store locations across the mid-atlantic — Sheetz’s Brand Design Project Manager, Lauren Gerard, developed a robust, data-driven process that keeps their team aligned, efficient, and creative.

“We have goals that are really similar to other teams, I’m sure. We need to deliver on our ever-growing project list on time by planning and allocating our resources. We need to keep our team members motivated, be creative, and feel like they’re providing value … and we need to not run anybody into the ground.”

Lauren’s solution? A comprehensive strategy centered on Lytho’s Workflow, Asset Manager, Brand Center, and reporting capabilities — what she calls “mitigate, forecast, report, manage, and reflect.” By carefully implementing each step, Sheetz maximizes throughput, avoids burnout, and delivers on the high demands of their omnichannel marketing.

Below, we break down the Sheetz method — showcasing how you can replicate their strategies to elevate your own creative operations.

Key Takeaways:

• Self-service brand center: Allow stakeholders to grab existing, approved assets themselves.
• Reduced request volume: Immediately cut down on repetitive, straightforward asks.

Custom Fields for Complexity & Priorities

Sheetz built robust custom fields in Lytho Workflow to categorize requests by marketing vehicle (billboards, emails, in-store signage, etc.) and by “tier.” Tiers reflect complexity:

• Tier 1: Large campaigns, 15+ deliverables, potentially multiple concepts and photo/video shoots.
• Tier 2: Mid-sized campaigns with a smaller shoot or integrated concept.
• Tier 3: Single, standalone projects with no fresh production.

By assigning the right tier and marketing vehicle to each template, the team automatically loads the correct tasks, deadlines, and LOE estimates.

Key Takeaways

• Project Templates + LOE: Use consistent naming, tasks, and time estimates to guide scheduling.
• Custom Fields & Priorities: Identify projects by priority, complexity (tier), and deliverable type to get granular data.

On a monthly basis, they examine bigger-picture metrics such as audience split, average queue time, and average request durations. This systematic approach allows them to spot issues early and provide leadership with timely forecasts of creative timelines. Every quarter, they compare actual time utilization against scheduled hours to validate their average LOE estimates, and on a yearly basis, they assess total output, average proof versions, and content value — demonstrating the cost savings of their in-house creative operations.

Key Takeaways

• Regular reporting cadence: Daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, and yearly metrics drive informed decision-making.
• Data storytelling: Use metrics to highlight successes, identify bottlenecks, and reinforce the value of the creative team.

5. Manage: So this actually works in practice?

Once requests are accepted, Sheetz either redirects them to the DAM Brand Center if existing assets suffice or creates a new project in Lytho with the right tasks and LOE. Lauren’s team then checks Workload views—an invaluable Lytho feature that shows each resource’s scheduled hours:

“We can see exactly what resources are under or over capacity. When we’re reviewing workload, we do a few types of adjustments: leveling, smoothing, and trafficking.”

• Smoothing: Balancing a single person’s tasks over their available days.
• Leveling: Reassigning tasks among multiple team members with similar skill sets.
• Trafficking: Reviewing new work, retagging priorities, and adjusting LOE or due dates.

Lauren highlights how they use color-coded priorities in Lytho for rush, high, and late tasks. Each color cues the designer’s immediate priorities for the day. This approach transforms daily standups into optional quick checks — no need for full-team calls about who’s doing what.

Key Takeaway

• Workload view: Gain “instant gratification” by spotting and fixing over-capacity or under-capacity at a glance.
• Priority flags: Keep tasks organized and ensure urgent items get done first without derailing everything else.

Meetings With Purpose

• With the workload view providing real-time transparency, the team repurposed daily “what’s done?” standups into weekly “work share” sessions.
• Twice a week, they also hold short, focused meetings to review new requests and manage ongoing tasks, freeing up more time for actual creative work.

Key Takeaways

• Data-driven reflection: Make time to identify wins and optimize your process.
• Continuous improvement: Use each insight to streamline future workflows, reduce unnecessary requests, and increase team morale.

Conclusion: Start, Iterate, and Keep Going

Ready to transform your own creative process? Start small — whether that’s creating a single project template or adding one weekly reflection meeting. As Lauren says, the key is to “keep working at it.” Over time, you’ll build a system that helps your creatives do their best work — without sacrificing cost, speed, or quality.

Want a deeper look at Lauren’s process? Watch the webinar recording below for an in-depth conversation on how Sheetz manages its high-traffic creative operations.