Well, I sent the defamation letter and it so inflamed my Asian client that she changed the Google rating from two stars to one star. So I called her and explained that I had put in the Report to get a pest inspection, etc. She admitted she hadn’t fully read the Report. I apologized for not verbally mentioning the potential pest problem and that a poor rating would hurt my relationship with the Asian community I’ve worked hard to build up.
I’d do it just like you did Hank. Send the letter which is the stick. Call the client which is the carrot. A stick and a carrot combined usually works like magic… as it did for you.