I'm only a year or so into my freelance "career"and for the first time I've come across a client offering me payment in equity. what the hell does that even mean?

Your client is likely offering you a fractional ownership in the business, in exchange for your contribution of time and effort.

I've been in this position myself. My honest advice: Unless you *really* believe in the business plan, and have personal history with the person offering, don't touch it.

Typically, an offer of equity is made when the cash isn't available to purchase the services directly. This reflects that the business idea is under-capitalized (cash-poor). Young businesses need a bunch of cash in the early days, and cash flow can kill even a great idea.

It's hard to give specific answers without knowing more about your situation, but my pessimistic prediction is that you'll end up spending a lot of time on a project that is unlikely to offer you significant return.

Don't chase someone else's dream unless there's a rock-solid business plan attached. If you're being offered a position as a partner, you need to understand the fundamentals of the business. You need to understand the cash flow, future plans, and full implications of the business. An equity arrangement isn't something that should be offered (or accepted) lightly.

more than likely they just want to con you out of a web design - direct them to this site and then forget about it.