Electronic coupons are distributed by receiving customer preferences including a customer identifier associated with a preferred vendor identifier, a preferred vendor category identifier, a preferred product / service identifier, or a preferred brand name identifier. Vendor information is received which includes a vendor identifier, a vendor category identifier, a vendor product / service identifier, a brand name identifier, or a promotional offer discount parameter. The customer preferences are compared with the vendor information to determine whether or not a match exists between the customer preferences and the vendor information. If a match exists, an electronic coupon is generated that includes information indicative of the preferred vendor identifier, the preferred vendor category identifier, the preferred product / service identifier, the preferred brand name identifier, or the promotional offer discount parameter. The generated electronic coupon is distributed to a customer associated with the customer identifier.