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Washington: Just call her Hillary. Say hello to Barack.
This year's crop of US presidential candidates are using distinctive first and last names to connect with voters and create a brand that they hope will resonate on Election Day.
So what's in a name? Quite a bit when you're running for the most powerful position in the world. The trick, analysts and observers say, is how to use those names to woo voters.
Hillary Clinton, the New York senator and former first lady, has emphasised her first name, putting it on posters and signing it on fund-raising appeals in an effort to stamp her own identity on her campaign and counter perceptions that she is aloof.
"Names are brands," said Christopher Hull, an adjunct professor at Georgetown University who specialises in presidential primaries. Using her first name also differentiates her from famous husband Bill Clinton, the former president.
"I think if she just went by Clinton or Hillary Clinton, [then] people are reminded of Bill again," said Anna Beardsley, 29, attending a rally for Obama in Alexandria, Virginia.
"Hillary's kind of a nice, fun name. I think that ... she has to use that to her advantage. I think she needs it."
Obama, on the other hand, has coupled his unusual-sounding names with a revival-like campaign. Packed stadiums often greet him by calling out "Obama, Obama" over and over again.
"The name has become part of how he sells himself - a kind of star quality," said Julian Zelizer, professor of history and public affairs at Princeton University. "It sounds like a rock star ... like Prince or something."
Namesake
Obama adores Barack
Barack Obama has never been to the port town of Obama on Japan's snowy west coast, and residents only know him from news reports on his faraway campaign for the US presidency. But, Obama the town is nuts about Obama the man.
Obama's name graces posters hung in the main hotel. Headbands and T-shirts with drawings of the candidate's face will be available soon. Confectioners are designing sweet bean cakes with Obama's portrait.
"Obama gives good speeches and has a good voice, so I want him to do well. And, of course, we share the same name," said Seiji Fujiwara, a hotel executive and leader of a local support group established earlier this month for the Illinois senator.
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