Hiring a GEO Agency in Jakarta? Ask These 7 Questions First
TL;DR: The best way to choose a GEO agency in Jakarta is to ask how it will measure, write and earn your presence in AI answers before you look at its ranking or price. Seven questions separate real Generative Engine Optimization from repackaged SEO or self-promotion. White Wood is a GEO studio itself, so treat this as the checklist we would want buyers to use on us.
Lists of “best GEO agencies” are usually written by agencies, and one tracking study published in October 2026 found Google’s AI Overviews left the self-ranking brand out of the recommendation 83% of the time. Questions work better.
1. Which exact prompts will you track, and in which language?
A GEO engagement should start with a written list of the exact prompts your buyers ask, in the language they ask them. Google reports that 84% of Gemini prompts in Indonesia use the local language (The Gemini Report). Good answer: a frozen list in Indonesian and English, agreed before work starts. Red flag: “we optimise for AI in general”.
2. Will you report per engine, or one score?
A report that only shows one blended score cannot tell you which engine is empty. ChatGPT held 84.91% of AI chatbot share in Indonesia in September 2026 (Statcounter), but Google’s AI Overviews and AI Mode matter too. Good answer: one column per engine, with a summary on top. We explain why in how to measure AI visibility.
3. Do you separate “named” from “cited”?
Being cited as a source and being recommended by name are different outcomes, and a good agency reports both. In Discoverable’s UK study of 1,000 questions across six AI services, ChatGPT did not name the business ranked first on Google in 72.5% of eligible answers (Discoverable, 16 Sep 2026). Ask to see one sample report with both columns.
4. Will you publish “best of” lists that rank us first?
Self-ranked listicles tend to help competitors more than the brand that wrote them. Lily Ray found that when a Google AI Overview cited a listicle in which a brand ranked itself first, that brand was left out of the recommendation 83% of the time (Lily Ray, 4 Oct 2026). Good answer: no. Red flag: a content plan full of “top 10” pages with you at number one.
5. Are you selling special AI files or schema as must-haves?
For Google’s AI features, there is no special file or markup you are required to buy. Google states there are no additional requirements to appear in AI Overviews or AI Mode, and you do not need new machine-readable files, AI text files or special schema (Google Search Central). Technical hygiene still matters; a “secret AI tag” is not a strategy.
6. Can you show the source behind every number you write for us?
Every statistic an agency publishes under your name should link to where it came from. Google’s guidance calls it “critical to manually factcheck and review all AI-generated content” (Google Search Central). Ask who writes, who checks, and whether the Indonesian version is written natively or translated.
7. Is any of this paid placement?
Ads in ChatGPT do not buy a recommendation in the answer itself. OpenAI repeated on 5 October 2026 that “advertising does not influence the answers ChatGPT provides” (OpenAI). If an agency promises guaranteed mentions, ask exactly how.
Good answers and red flags
| Question | Good answer | Red flag |
|---|---|---|
| Prompts and language | Frozen list, Indonesian and English | ”AI in general” |
| Engines | One column per engine | One score only |
| Named vs cited | Both, reported separately | Merged into “visibility” |
| Self-ranked lists | No | ”Top 10” pages with you first |
| Special files | Hygiene, not magic | Must-buy AI tags |
| Sources | Linked for every number | ”Trust us” |
| Paid placement | Clearly separated | Guaranteed mentions |
Where White Wood fits
White Wood is a GEO agency in Jakarta that gets brands named in AI answers, using its Narrative Architecture method and SOLEDAD measurement. We measure with our own engine, SOLEDAD, and offer a free AI-visibility report as a starting point. We will not tell you we are the best GEO agency in Jakarta; ask us these seven questions and judge the answers.
FAQ
How do I choose a GEO agency in Jakarta? Ask how it tracks prompts, reports per engine, separates named from cited, sources its numbers and avoids self-ranked lists. Compare answers before prices.
What is the difference between GEO and SEO? SEO aims to rank pages in search results. GEO aims to get a brand named and cited inside AI-generated answers. Good GEO builds on good SEO.
How long until results show? It depends on the prompts and engines. Ask the agency to agree a fixed list and a measurement schedule up front.