That is exactly why brands use bright colours. It appeals to the part of the brain that evolved to recognize ripe fruit, for example.
As uncomfortable as it is to admit that these things may influence our behaviour, it is the reality. No person is completely immune.
Free will is largely an illusion. We act on impulses, then the conscious mind comes up with a plausible explanation for that action.
The gas station is actually evidence of this: literally the utility of the product does not change, but more revenue ...
I think maybe it's an offence to Engineers to posit that they are not 'in control'. It takes some right-brain thinking to get this it's all a little counterintuitive.
But it's definitely reality. For the quickest possible introduction to really odd marketing concepts that are true, I'd recommend the '22 Immutable Laws of Marketing'. For an Engineer, it's like getting hit in the head with a frisbee.
More likely than not, you're just not aware of it, which is normal.
FYI the emotional connection is not just made 'via tooltips', it's usually a package affair.
The article is a good example: the product (gas) and price didn't change, one could argue cleanliness was changed but that's a little doubtful unless the old station was disgusting. What changed was probably brand, colours, lighting, atmosphere, modern appearance - all pretty superficial stuff that has nothing to do with the actual product - gasoline. And yet it makes a big difference to most people, probably including you and I. We probably don't notice we were more likely to pull into the big, lit, white, modern looking gas station with the brand we recognised - over the off-brand gas next door, which is identical.