header defined by class instead of just h1 tag

does this matter for seo purposes?

[subbu]

I've added a few "headers" on some pages on my site. They aren't tagged using h1 or h2, instead, they're simple paragraph tags with a class defininition "h1" so the front end of the code looks like <p class="h1">

should I go back and change everything to <h1> to help improve "onsite" optimization or am I okay as is?

[Robin_reala]

Having semantic headers does help SEO. If you've got time it'd be useful to change these. This will also help accessibility (as long as you use correct levels). For example, the JAWS screenreader has an option to read out a list of a headers to the user so they can jump to a specific point on the page.

[subbu]

Thanks Robin.

I suspected as much - I was just looking for a reason to not have to go through it and change things...

But I suppose I'll change a few pages a night and be done with it before April's over.

Here's a related question that I've been wondering about:
Any pros or cons to having links anchored within the text bounded by h1 tags?