Hands up if you ever collected an entire set of happy meal toys. I had the figurines from the movie Aladdin, with a miniature Genie that you could wind up and watch as it moved around erratically before inevitably falling off the edge of a table.

How about a McDonald's birthday party? I had my fifth birthday there and I remember wearing one of those cardboard crowns for the next fortnight.

But the nostalgia that we may feel for those occasions is part of a carefully constructed brand experience which psychologists term 'brand imprinting for later actuation'. It involves deliberately making positive associations with a product or brand, such as McDonalds, in early childhood - associations which persist into the adult minds of today's consumers.

Cigarette companies used to do it too. They would sell fake toy cigarettes so children could mimic the habits of the adults around them. And while the technique is scrutinised when it's conducted by corporations like McDonalds and cigarette manufacturers, it happens in other industries too, including banking.

Children's bank accounts use brand imprinting. They are usually represented by colourful, cartoon mascots and the behaviour of saving and making regular deposits is often met with the approval of parents, which reinforces the behaviour - and makes a positive association with the bank.

I remember school banking. Every child would bring in a few dollars every Friday and fill out their deposit slips and the school would then bank the money on our behalf. The idea was to teach children the benefits of regular saving, but banks probably fell over themselves to offer the service. There's no reinforcement like peer reinforcement.

Then there are the concessions. Have you ever asked yourself why banks will waive the fees on children's accounts? Accounts in which the amounts are usually so small that banks probably operate them at a loss. It's an investment. They understand there is a high probability that child will grow up to continue their banking with them.

It's easy to see how it happens. You might have the same account all throughout your childhood, then you get your first part-time job. You have your salary paid into that same account while you're still at school, because it has no fees and there is no reason to change.

Then you finish school and get a full-time job, maybe a credit card or a car loan. You will probably shop around, but you're likely to end up with a product from your existing bank. You trust them. You already have your other banking products with them and you like the convenience of having everything together in the one place. They might even offer discounts for having multiple products with them.

Then you go on to purchase a home, house and contents insurance, car insurance, maybe more credit cards and then you might have children and open a savings account for them.

Unlike the examples of McDonalds and cigarette companies, brand imprinting from banks isn't a subversive psychological technique to encourage you to participate in an activity that is harmful to your health. But it can have negative effects, particularly if you allow it to influence your decisions about financial products.

Shop around. Change banks if you find a better deal and don't be afraid to have financial products from multiple institutions.

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