Cracked put together a list of psychological tricks that supermarkets use to boost sales. Highlights include:

• The mascots on breakfast cereals often look downwards – to catch the eyes of children.
• The aisles with the highest margin items sometimes have smaller floor tiles to slow down shopping carts, increasing time spent at the store.
• Flowers are typically sold at the entrance of supermarkets to prime customers into thinking about freshness.
• Removing dollar signs from prices – so that it reads 9.99 instead of $9.99 – makes the money seem more abstract, and purchases more likely.
• Scents can affect spending – a coconut fragrance in the swimwear aisle increases sales.
• Supermarkets don’t want shoppers to settle into a routine – they will shuffle around inventory, so more time is spent looking for staple buys.

Read the full list on Cracked.