It's so secret that many moms control much of the household spending.

Now that smartphones have become ubiquitous, moms have become a "shopping force" and retailers and marketers are taking notice, according to this Washington Post article.

From Procter & Gamble to AT&T and Pandora, firms are taking notice that mothers, newly armed with smartphones, are becoming a new kind of shopping force online. A decade ago, these women were single and childless 18- to 34-year-olds who captured the hearts of Madison Avenue marketing executives with their voracious consumer appetites. Now, they are older and often in charge of the household wallet.

Moms are the fastest-growing buyers of iPhones, and they are tuning in more frequently and for longer periods than any other group on media Web sites such as Pandora, a streaming music service. Nielsen Research says mothers are far more likely to share photos and news stories on Facebook via smartphones and computers than anyone else.

The article points out that moms are becoming early adopters of smartphone technology. That doesn't surprise me, given moms I know are major multitaskers -- whether they're working moms or stay-at-home moms or in between.

I've had a smartphone for a long time but since I switched to a iPhone earlier this year, my online consumption has skyrocketed to a point where my husband constantly reminds me to stop checking my phone. I also do a lot of online banking, mobile shopping, reading and other things on my phone.

In response to moms' voracious use of smartphones, companies and retailers are trying to understand their habits and turn that information into dollars.

What made you switch to a smartphone? Has it made you more efficient or less so? And do you think it's a good idea that marketers are trying to cater to moms?