We can never know the full intricacies of how things influence us. We are being subconsciously influenced all the time. Salespeople and store owners know this and use it to their advantage. Even when people feel like they are making free choices, they are not. It has been proven that any decision we "consciously" make is actually made by subconscious brain processes before we are conciously aware of it. These subconscious brain processes are constantly being influenced.