Measure AI Visibility in Bahasa First
Indonesian brands should measure AI visibility mainly on Indonesian-language prompts, adding English ones only where English-speaking buyers matter. Google’s Gemini Report says 84% of Gemini prompts in Indonesia are in local languages and 82% come from mobile devices.
1. Your buyers ask in Bahasa, so measure in Bahasa
An AI visibility score is only as useful as the language of the prompts behind it. Google’s Gemini Report for Southeast Asia 2026 says 84% of Gemini prompts in Indonesia are in local languages, and 82% come from mobile devices (Google, The Gemini Report). If your tracked questions are in English, you are measuring a minority of Gemini prompts in Indonesia. Start with how your buyers actually phrase the question, informal wording included.
2. An English page doesn’t automatically answer a Bahasa question
A strong English article can still be missing from answers to the same question asked in Indonesian. Check the answers in both languages before you assume one page covers both markets.
3. Treat English as a deliberate slot, not the default
Every prompt you track costs a slot in a capped set, so each English prompt should earn its place. Good reasons: international buyers, a regional board that reads English, or an investor audience. Weak reasons: “it sounds more professional” or “the agency’s template is in English”. For a local B2B brand, that usually means mostly Indonesian prompts with a small English layer, but set it by where revenue comes from, not by habit.
| Buyer situation | Main prompt language | Page you need |
|---|---|---|
| Local buyers, local sales team | Indonesian | Indonesian page or a true Indonesian twin |
| Regional or international buyers | English, plus Indonesian for local partners | English page with an Indonesian twin |
| Board or investors reading the report | Indonesian for performance, English for summary | Report in English, prompts in the buyers’ language |
| Consumer brand, mass market | Indonesian, including informal phrasing | Indonesian pages written the way people talk |
4. Write prompts the way Indonesians type them
Track prompts in the wording buyers actually use: informal, often mixed Indonesian and English, and phrased as a request for a recommendation. “Rekomendasi agensi GEO Jakarta” and “agensi GEO terbaik di Indonesia” are different questions to an engine. Draft each prompt from real sources: sales-call notes, WhatsApp enquiries, site search and the questions your team hears. A tidy, formal translation measures a question nobody asks.
5. Check which language the cited sources are in
When you read an AI answer, record the language of the sources it cites, not only whether your brand is named. If Indonesian answers cite only English pages, or cite a competitor’s Indonesian page, that tells you which page to build next. For the reporting side, keep results per engine and per language, as we explain in why blended AI scores mislead.
How White Wood measures
White Wood tracks client prompts in SOLEDAD, White Wood’s AI-monitoring engine, and builds each set around the language buyers use, with English added only where a buyer exists for it. Our own whitewood.ai set is mostly Indonesian for the same reason. For the full method, see how to measure AI visibility.
What this cannot tell you
Google’s 84% counts local languages, not Indonesian alone, and covers Gemini prompts only. It does not show how buyers phrase questions in ChatGPT or Perplexity.
Declared interest: White Wood sells this work and measures it with SOLEDAD, our own AI-monitoring engine.
FAQ
Which language should I use to measure AI visibility for an Indonesian brand?
Mainly Indonesian, written the way your buyers type, with English prompts added only where English-speaking buyers matter. Read each answer per engine and note the language of the sources it cites.
Should every page be bilingual?
No. Build twins where you track both languages. If buyers only ask in Indonesian, a strong Indonesian page beats two weak ones.
Can I translate my English prompts into Indonesian?
Use them as a starting point, then rewrite them the way buyers actually ask. Literal translations often miss the wording people type or say.
Sources
- Google, The Gemini Report, Southeast Asia 2026: https://grow.google/intl/id_id/gemini-report/
- White Wood key-prompt set for whitewood.ai (set as of 16 September 2026), tracked in SOLEDAD, White Wood’s AI-monitoring engine