Why does sonics advertise to places they dont have restaurants in?

I live in maryland, but go to school in NY. The closest sonics to both of those locations is either delaware or pennsylvania. I've been seeings sonics commercials for years and am really confused as to why they advertise to so many places that they dont have restaurants in.Why does sonics advertise to places they dont have restaurants in?
Well, according to their website, Sonic hopes to expand into markets they're not presently located in, for instance the northeast. There are a few Sonics in Pennsylvania, but above that, there are none at this time. Perhaps advertising in this area (and other areas) will help people become familiar with the brand and will generate interest for when Sonic does join these markets.

Also, it can be valuable for the travel market. If I'm going down to Florida and I know a little about what Sonic has to offer though I've never been before, I may be more likely to go if I'm familiar with the name and product while places like Steak N Shake or Chick-Fil-A would be less appealing because those brands are virtually invisible in the northeast.
This is a great question. My husband and I see these commercials and always go...ummm...that looks good....and we don't have one anywhere near us either. Maybe they will be coming and they want people to be familiar with their product since they see it on t.v. It's working because as soon as we get one...I want to go check out some of those milk shakes I keep seeing (he, he).Why does sonics advertise to places they dont have restaurants in?
So that when you travel to a place has a Sonic, you will try it.
Happens here too. They just pay the service companies to air the commercial, and since the station is played all over the country, so is the commercial
I comment on that every time I see those! My husband threatened to buy one and put it near our home so I would shut up about it. My guess is they are using it to target markets and see where they should expand to.
Many companies advertise on national cable. The problem is what you describe: Sometimes you see ads for companies that are not in your area. That's what is happening with Sonic.
Because they want u to want sonic when they finally build it. They did that around us. We seen sonic commercials 4 about a year before they built it and they were so busy when they opened.